The kitsune's dance fails to connect with the guard, who then drops back and tries to strike the dervish with an arrow.
However, the arrow fails to pierce the kitsune.
Combat Round Three Begins
Blooming Flower
Imjah -4 HP
Shenendril
Folloch
Kenji
Guard
The dog with an incredible shiny coat sniffs the air, nose to sky. He follows that nose in the direction of the creature that he can't see.
The bow slides from the guard's hand as the summoned dog hones in on the invisible priest's position.
Concerned that the summoned beast will reveal his position, the priest begins to gesture and drone on as his form appears.
The syllables and movement of the priest suddenly seem rather fascinating.
"Let me walk away with the gold the villagers have entrusted to me." Folloch requests with an almost devilish smile.
Combat Round Three Cont'd/Rond Four Begins
Kenji
Guard - takes no action this turn
Blooming Flower
Imjah -4 HP
Shenendril
Folloch
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"Ack!" Shenendril yells as she finds herself much closer to the man than she would like or expected. She feels lucky that he didn't stab her while he was invisible.
Until she realizes what is being cast on them. She likes that even less.
She quickly fires her bow to try to stop him.
"Get 'im boy! Get 'im!" she calls out to the dog, as well.
The dog lets out a bark that sounds like an angel dog singing and closes the distance, letting his intrinsic hatred for evil empower his bite.
The sylph's arrow strikes the priest as the jaws of summoned beast dig into the man's robes and flesh.
Combat Round Three/Four Cont'd
Kenji
Guard
Blooming Flower
Imjah -4 HP
Shenendril
Folloch -8 HP
The guard, beaten, remains upright.
Folloch is struck by the singing kitsune's attack and then by the tongue of the giant frog. Yet, as the priest is pulled toward the creature's maw, his spell takes effect.
Suddenly, Blooming Flower, Kenji, Shenendril, and the guard are eac h drawn to Folloch's gestures and droning words, finding them to be quite fascinating. Each feels compelled to stop your hostile actions and to begin staring blankly at Folloch.
A devilish grin forms on the bloodied face of Folloch. However, it quickly fades when he realizes that the frog had not released its grip. He tries to escape.
Yet, he remains stuck fast.
Combat Round Four/Five Cont'd
Kenji (fascinated)
Guard (fascinated)
Blooming Flower (fascinated)
Imjah -4 HP
Giant Frog
Shenendril (fascinated)
Summoned Dog (assuming it hasn't yet returned to its native plane)
Folloch -16 HP
Heavenly Rex is not quite so convinced. He's seen bewitchment before and attacks again!
The canine servitor tears into the priest, who quickly loses consciousness from his injuries.
With Folloch defeated, the party is soon surrounded by throngs of villagers, many seeming to have suddenly regained their senses. One of them appears holding the wand that Folloch had once held, noting that the invisible priest must have discarded it in his efforts to flee.
"What happened?" some of the gathering villagers seem to be asking.
"Folloch's wand." one offers in explanation. "It must be some sort of mesmeric baton ."
Yet another comes forth, an elderly woman with a huge smile and pleading eyes. "Folloch Teag--he made us appoint him mayor... and worse! We are so very thankful for your intervention." she explains before asking, "How can we ever repay you?"
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"I owe you even more thanks than most of the creatures I call to aid me," Shenendril is sure to say to the dog before sending it back where it came from.
She smiles and nods to the gathered villagers, accepting their thanks graciously and humbly.
"We were actually looking for that," she says, pointing one elegant finger at the wand. "Let us take it with us and place it someplace safe and that is all the payment we need."
”Wow! Thanks a lot! Villagers... you are now free and we hope that you allow us to take the possessions of this oppressor for further investigation!“ Kenji says to the crowd.
On Folloch's person you find, an ornate dagger , bracers of armor +1, 48 gold pieces, and the golden scepter he had carried.
"We were actually looking for that," she says, pointing one elegant finger at the wand. "Let us take it with us and place it someplace safe and that is all the payment we need."
"Yes, yes!" responds the elderly woman, seeming to take charge and speak on behalf of her fellow villagers. "Please, take whatever possession that vile man had."
Walking over to the carriage that the priest and his enthralled men had been loading, the elderly woman pulls back a cloth to reveal a small pile of sacks. She nods to one of the young men for assistance and the two of them bring two, heavy sacks over to you all. "We do not have much to give, but please accept the scepter and these sacks of coins as payment for your deeds!"
The sacks contain a combined total of 300 gold pieces. The villagers are insistent that the party keep them as a reward, though they are reluctant to part with any more coin. They assure you that, should you ever return to Allenstead, that you would each be hailed as heroes--though they are quick to caution that you should not expect to see a statue in your likeness even as they tear down the one that first greeted you in Allenstead.
The villagers see to your needs for the remainder of time that you are in town and show great appreciation when you finally depart in pursuit of the next clue provided in Ulisha's journal.
With the help of an appreciative scholar in Allenstead, you were able to decipher additional portions of notes provided in Ulisha’s journal. Now translated, these notes recount the tale of a Pathfinder who, a few decades earlier, had uncovered a cave containing petroglyphs of the Rain of Stars—an event that occurred thousands of years ago during the Age of Darkness. This Pathfinder took note of the cave’s location and made rubbings of its etchings before shipping the papers off to the Grand Lodge in Absalom for evaluation. Although interesting, the find did not warrant further investigation, so plans to examine the rubbings or explore the cave were shelved.
The notes recount that Ulisha had found herself searching through a storeroom for a rare urn, when she came upon the decades oldd rubbings. Unlike the Pathfinder who preceded her, Ulisha noticed that the rubbings actually mapped a crash site from the Rain of Stars. By traveling back to the Pathfinder’s cave and surveying the hills from that vantage point, Ulisha notes in her journal she believes she has now pinpointed the location of this crash site.
Accompanying this notebook entry, Ulisha filled the next several pages with crude maps, complex equations, and further notes. Having returned to the Pathfinder’s cave mentioned in her previous entry and by observing the angle of the ridgeline and her current position, she was able to calculate the crash site’s probable location. The last page on the matter includes a detailed map into Numeria with various landmarks and a destination. An addendum written in recent ink warns, “Tread lightly. Numeria remains a mystery to the rest of the world. Those who stay too long draw unwanted attention.”
During your journey, you have plenty of opportunities to recall information about the land of Numeria that you may have already learned or to gather some from among the locals you meet during your travels.
Your travels take you back toward the northeast, toward Gralton. On your journey, you find that Ulisha’s map is straightforward and easy to follow. The journey is not difficult. As you approach the Numerian border, you find it unguarded and you are able to easily slip across.
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Shenendril thanks the villagers again, and enjoys their hospitality before departing the next day with their prize. She spends her portion of the reward on a potion of cure light wounds and 2 flasks of acid. She has no need for the bracers of armor, though and leaves them for the rest of the group.
"Numeria? Fascinating. I've always wanted an excuse to visit that country. Looks like I've got it," she says when she finds out about their next destination.
"Did you guys know that a meteor exploded over Numeria and caused the devastation evident today? It no doubt set the people here back into a more barbarous state. But, it wasn't all bad, the meteorite apparently had a lot of 'Numerian steel' or adamantine as it is more often called. But, even more amazing is that there are rumors it wasn't a meteorite at all, but rather some sort of technological starship full of other technology. The natives distrust it, though and try to destroy anything they find that seems to be of a technological nature," she tells the group as they move along and she gathers some information from those along the way.
As you climb into the Numerian foothills, the trees become sparse. A series of switchbacks rises to a low summit. The view is phenomenal at the crest of this hill, where Ulisha’s map indicates a crash site. Vast plains extend to the north, where clouds gather on the horizon. To the south, the Sellen River cuts a definitive border between the River Kingdoms and Numeria.
Whatever it was that that fell from the sky and crashed here is quite large and has embedded itself deeply into the side of the hill. Over time, the hill has eroded, covering the mysterious object under layers of dirt. You believe you should be able to unearth a fair amount of the enormous object by hand.
After only a few minutes of digging, you uncover a solid metal surface buried below. The metallic object is ovoid, just over 10 feet in length and 5 feet in diameter at its widest point. The metal is strange and unfamiliar.
The entire object appears to be artificial in nature and relatively undamaged. The gleaming, metal exterior resembles something more like the hull of a vessel than natural stone or ore that has been shaped by the forces of the earth and the elements. Unearthing the crashed object feels more like recovering the remains of a wreck than excavating a buried meteorite. Its surface is scratched and dented but unbroken, and a 3-by-5-foot section of the side appears as though it could be opened on a hinge.
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Shenendril shields her eyes with one hand as she looks down on the crash from a hillside above. As they approach, she studies the area around the crash.
"Impressive even in failure and destruction," she comments regarding the forces obviously involved in the collision.
She looks around at the group that has continued along with her on the quests to follow Ulisha's journal. A wry smile slowly dawns on her face as she appraises them all. She misses some of her burlier companions in this moment.
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After a bit, Shenendril gives up wrestling with the panel that seems unlikely to come off with any amount of muscle power she has. She steps back, stroking her chin thoughtfully.
"Does anyone have any rope?" she asks as she focuses her gaze then lets it unfocus, she reaches across the veil, coalescing her thoughts and will and forming it into a spectral horse.
Assuming someone has rope, she'll fasten it to the creature's saddle and tie it off against the panel as best she can. She then has the Mount move forward and once more leans against the panel, adding her not so significant strength to that of the horse.
"Come on, guys! Pull!"
The clever idea of summoning a horse is thwarted when the beast, apparently not used to pulling heavy loads on its home plane, is unable to get the door to budge much. However, the effort does seem to loosen off some crusted dirt and debris.
With the door to the artificial object finally opened, you are all able to peer within. The inside of the wrecked object is cramped—bearing many similarities to the interior of a small sailing vessel.
A single chair made out of the same strange metal faces the hatch, dozens of straps hang inside the device, and an array of levers and buttons lines the interior on one side. Several dozen palm-sized metallic discs and an unadorned silvery bracer lie scattered across the interior. The systems the buttons once operated are no longer functional.
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Shenendril frowns in disappointment as it becomes apparent that she doesn't have the mental horsepower to open up the door. She is about to reluctantly suggest that they give up when Imjah pulls and manipulates and yanks on the door with impressive tenacity until it finally pops open.
"Strong as a horse!" she compliments him as she enters the small space, utterly fascinated by the alien nature of it.
She has no idea what any of it does and waits to see if any of her companions do.
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Kenji walks forward.
"Look at all this stuff!? Looks super complicated. What does that button do ... oh .... and that lever? Hmmm, the buttons no longer appear to function. Likewise, none of the levers seem to have any effect when I pulled them ... wait! This one opens and closes the hatch and it still operates."
Kenji opens the hatch and then walks and investigates its interior.
The Mwangi man cannot discern the value of what the party has found.
After an extended search of the vessel, the party finds nothing more of potential value. Once you have recovered the items discovered within, you exit the pod and descend the summit, working your way down the switchbacks.
Suddenly, a fierce woman dressed in traditional Kellid garb steps out from the surround brush and blocks the path.
“Stop there,” demands the Kellid woman who,, you can now see, hefts a massive blade. “You’re are not from here and those things are not yours. Give us the silverdisks, all the gold you have, and anything else you found there. Then you may live.”
You notice that the woman is not alone.
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Kenji steps forward with a smile.
"Oh wait a minute. I have had enough of the woman in my life that wanted me to give them my love, my money and my … well discs! You haven’t even introduced yourself and are already so demanding … hmmm … I like that!” Kenji says with a sly smile.
”How about a counteroffer: We arrange a dinner … your team and my team … I am sure we will establish diplomatic relations between our parties which will be to everybody’s joint benefit!” he asks with a bow.
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Shenendril's eyes narrow as Kenji begins to speak. Her hair whips wildly around her head instead of being gently tossed in a localized breeze. They go back to normal and there is a faintly bemused smile on her face when he finishes, her hair returning to it's normal level of restlessness.
"Yes, surely we can break bread and not skulls over this. Perhaps you can explain to us in more depth why you have the right to the disks. We're reasonable people who will listen to reasonable explanations," she adds some logic to Kenji's emotion.
The Kellid woman nods, her demeanor seeming to warmed somewhat do to the overtures by the party.
"We do not require food presently, nor do we invite outsiders, such as yourselves to our camps." she explains.
"As for the disks," she continues, "These lands belong to the Kellid people and objects found within these lands belong to our tribe. As for the disks and skymetals, our history has taught us that such things are best left undisturbed. Skymetal removed from the ground is best returned there or destroyed. Tales of the Felldales, passed down over the years from our kin, affirm this."
The Kellid tribeswoman pauses for a moment, then she partially concedes. "We do not wish a fight. You may keep your gold and be on your way. However, you must leave any silverdisks or other skymetal objects, some of which we suspect you have unearthed from beneath the hill."
"These are our terms. Should you find them unacceptable, then we will instead simply claim what we want off your dead bodies." says the woman as she grips the hilt of her blade tightly. The other Kellids follow her lead.
She then asks, "Do we have an agreement?"
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On one hand, Shenendril respects other people's traditions and cultures. On the other hand, she thinks it pretty silly to lay claim to everything within a land if all you're going to do is keep it buried. It would be different if she was stealing their cultural artifacts or the bones of their ancestors but all she was doing was trying to take something they didn't want around anyway away from them.
"Allow us a moment to confer," she says before turning to her companions.
"What do you think? Ulisha's journal just said that she wanted to investigate this place. We've done that. We can report to the Society what we found and if they want to they can send someone else to come claim it."
"I just wish we knew what any of this stuff did. I don't even know if it's safe leaving it in their hands. Or if it's safe to take it away, for that matter. Maybe they're right and it's better buried."
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"I believe we have learned enough to fulfill Ulisha's wishes if they were attainable in the first place," Imjah says. It is true that we do not know what any of these things do, so it seems best that we do nothing."
"I believe the real question is 'do we believe they truly wish these artifacts to remain undisturbed?'"
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"Agreed. We will take them back where we found them and then you can bury them," Shenendril calls out.
At least that way the Pathfinders will know exactly where they are rather than just letting the Kellids bury them wherever they decide to.
Assuming the woman doesn't protest, Shenendril will turn back toward the wreckage and dump anything she'd taken back into the open door, but won't step in.
The Kellid tribeswoman nods in approval as the party returns the skymetal items to the metal vessel. True to her word, she and her people allow you all to leave unmolested with the gear and gold that you brought with you.
Respectful of the wishes of the Kellid and perhaps even having earned some allies, you depart southward. Though no items were obtained, you leave having gained knowledge about the crash site is real and contains mysteries that you or others may investigate in the future. You are also secure know that there are additional riches to be had at other locations identified in Ulisha's journal.
The next missive within Ulisha’s journal brings you to Daggermark.
You have learned that Daggermark is one of the River Kingdoms. It is an exercise in anarchy, as anyone can hire assassins at affordable rates.
From Daggermark, you are able to discern enough of the landmarks and terrain to make decipher the map to the new spider’s nest that Ulisha had included with the journal.
You know that giant spiders are known for their venom, which is known to weaken their prey.
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Shenendril is feeling pretty pleased with their progress, so far. And not the less so because they were able to garner some valuable information in their last quest without having to shed any blood.
She suspects that trend will end when they go to Daggermark and she learns about the place from fellow travellers.
"Don't forget gentlemen, Daggermark is a very dangerous place. There's no real laws and assassination isn't just a possibility, it's an every day occurrence. In fact, anyone can hire an assassin from the Assassin's Guild and they often pair up with the Poisoner's Guild to use poison in their tasks. I'd be careful what you eat and drink."