Bokken tries to resist but a combination of Jerrik's charisma, Arim's calm ant collecting, and something Alfentinius is beginning to prepare sways the reclusive man into a brief parley.
"Well, another snack wouldn't hurt.. but only if it's quick. Daylight's burning and I have ingredients to fetch. Say, there aren't any fangberries around here, have you seen any on your wandering?"
The man sits awkwardly and fidgets with grass, collecting the right kind of ant if it passes by.
Aleksara grimaces and answers truthfully.
"The only thing I've seen is a large patch of radishes! Put me in a swamp and I can identify half the plants you see. Here? I'm a bit of know-nothing I'm afraid. Wendell?"
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Wendell struggles to remember the difference between berries. There are so many damn kinds. Little tart red ones that dry out your mouth, big plump blue ones that darken your teeth, little yellow-orange ones that make you s~++ blood for a week, green cluster berries with burs to stick in your throat that ferment into the best wine you'll ever taste. And if that weren't hard enough to remember, everyone calls them somethin' different.
"Hmmmm... Yeah. I reckon we passed some berries a ways back, should be easy 'nuff to find if y' follow our trail. Sure to wash 'em first, though. I might've pissed on 'em."
Wendell spits at the ground but it gets snagged in his beard and hangs there, glistening. "You ever need somethin', jus' leave a message with Oleg when y' see 'em. We need to stick together out here, even if we prefer to stay apart. And hey, if you can find the right ingredients for antivenom and antipoison, you'll have a buyer."
After eating for a few moments, the hunter begins to grow restless. He can tell Bokken suffers the same solitary lifestyle, and these awkward dragging conversations keep him from his preferred toils. "Well, I think it's time we hit the dusty trail." He looks to the others in case they have anything more to contribute, his conversational allowance for the week now spent.
The small gnome in the back of the cart sticks his head up and gives a shout.
I think I saw some fang berries the other day but they didn't seem ripe yet...
Alfentinius finishes gathering food for the make shift picnic of travel rations fortified by various scavenged food items the group has gathered. He grabs a tarp from one of the tents and spreads it really quick on the ground next to some rocks and begins setting out the food. He obviously relishes the task of setting the meal a trait left from his history as a servant in a royal house. While making sure everyone gets enough food, he makes polite conversation but works the conversation around to include some questions.
You said your Brother was an evil man, is he around here and should we look out for him.
What do you know about the stag King.
Is there any information on the Dark Fairy queen you could tell us about.
Do you happen to know the location of a Temple to Erastil guarded by a mad Bear?
When the meal is finished and the group are ready to move off Arim steps up to Bokken and places a had on the man's shoulder.
"I know you're happy out here Bokken. But things might get a good deal worse before they get better. Come to Oleg's if things get tough. You have friends now."
During the meal Bokken eats sparsely and sticks to a vegetarian diet. He answers the questions the best he can, though he doesn't know much.
"Hmf, never heard of any Stag King or Fairy Queens. I don't go too far south though, the wilderness gets more fierce the deeper you go. Power things, strange things, wild things... Weird dreams.. My brother went South. If he's still alive I would absolutely be wary. Wouldn't mind if he died personally. There are rumors of a temple to the east of here in the woods, those woods are littered with ruins of failed attempts to tame these lands I hear."
Arim, he thanks you for the thought and mentions that when a bag wind blows through he's fine hiding underground like a prairie dog.
Wrapping up lunch, Bokken mumbles to himself and waves awkwardly as he heads off. The afternoon passes amicably and camp is uneventful. The next morning you set off to the West for the next planned campsite.
The day progresses calmly as you ride west and survey this 95 square mile section of the map. What had once been a flat prairie is now starting to gradually roll into hills on the south while before youbtobthe West is a rising treeline. Presumably the forest where you found the zom-bolds and radishes.
Half way through the day you notice the skeleton of a deer. Then soon after one of a boar. Awoken from the monotonous daylong ride across the unchanging landscape by these irregular sightings, you're able to scan the area and see several more deer, boars, bears, and even a few human skeletons.
Arim rides on, his mood growing darker as he spots human bones amongst the animals
"Any ideas Wendell?"
"This could be that crazy bear's territory? We should back up and hide the horses and cart, come back and investigate on foot more carefully."
With Aleksara's keen sense for trouble and Arim's expert read of the field of gore, the caravan is able to remove itself from the vicinity of the sun bleached skeletons and shattered bones.
Returning on foot, you are able to scan the gruesome scene a second time and from a new vantage.
At the center of the vast scene of death you believe you spot the source of all the carrion. There appears to be a trapdoor made of earth that is just barely ajar roughly 50ft from you.
Alfentinius points towards a trapdoor seemingly made of earth....
I'm guessing there's something big and scary in there...
"Yuch. I'd hate to go into that to see what it is. Doubt its a bear though. What do you think, can we draw whatever it is out? Or should we leave it be for now and just mark its territory to avoid?"
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Wendell is staring up at the clouds when they come upon the corpses, and does not notice them until he is surrounded. He is noticeably taken aback by the gruesome scene, and does not notice the trap door.
"F##& me sideways. Eyes open, people. This looks more dangerous than pissant bandits."
When the others point out the trap door, Wendell is ashamed that he did not notice it sooner. "Holy s*$#fire, I would a walked right into the damn thing!"
He stares at the covered put and tries to recall what exactly it is-
-but nothing comes to mind.
Arim growls as Alfentinius point out the trapdoor.
"Leave it be? no. Not this close to Oleg's"
He draws his bow and looses an arrow at the door
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Wendell drops down off his horse and begins to search the bodies.
"Arim's right, don't think we should leave it, whatever it is. Done enough damage."
When Arim shoots an arrow, Wendell has his back turned to the trap door and is knelt down inspecting a body. His heart nearly leaps up his throat thinking whatever did this has emerged.
There is a shrilling shreik as a giant spider lurches out of the hole. It clatters as it finds you are all out of reach and retreats back into it's trapdoor.
Lets see if we can convince this thing that staying in its cave is not an option
Alfentinius pulls out his wand of magic missle and fires two globes of force into the shadows.
Drawing her sword, she also quickly pulls her enchant-able coins out for en-spelling: one gold, one silver, one copper. A combination that has done well for her recently. She also curses under her breath at the sight of the giant vermin!
"Damn big spider! I say spread out, get your ranged attacks ready and lets take it then. Shoot another arrow at the door, get it to come out again, and we try to pop it all at the same time from range!"
The giant arachnid shrieks again as the force missiles weave into its cover and strike it easily. Sensing that this is a fight it cannot win, the creature stays below ground.
"Stay with the wagon Alfentinius" Jerrik said as he tossed the reigns in the gnome's direction. He stepped over the bench seat and into the back of the wagon, fishing his pole arm hammer out from the other supplies strewn about the bed of the wagon. He jumped over the side of the wagon, landing with a thud.
"Spread out. Move to flank it. And try not to let it bite you."
Arim smiles at Jerik's back as the man moves off
"yes, sir!"
Tossing his bow into the wagon Arim draws his greatsword and jogs off towards the door
As Arim nears the large spider bolts out of the hole and bites at him with chattering mandibles! Puncturing the soldier in the leg. Immediately as fast as it attacks, the spider retreats back into it's earthen trap.
"Get out here eight-legs!"
:(
Alfentinius seeing the spider jump out at Arim gets a look of determination on his face and says two more orbs of force into the beast.
As the spider retreats Arim feels a numbness spread up from his injured leg. Aleksara's coin shot sinks into the sod with a dull thud, but Wendell and Alfentinius are able to hit the arachnid through the trap opening. A leg pokes out from the hidden hole as the beast collapses within.
After a moment's breather, Arim is able to focus and shake off the spider's venom.
Arim rubs his injured leg for a moment then kicks open what is left of the door to inspect the spider bellow, prodding it with a toe.
"Thought it'd put up more of a fight... Anything worth salvaging here?"
He says, disappointed.
The spider’s lair is a 5-foot-diameter, 25-foot-deep shaft with thick webbing along the walls. A few bodies still remain at the bottom of the shaft, including what appears to be the body of a dead bandit, still dressed in leather armor.
Arim lowers himself into the hole and begins to rummage in the detritus at the bottom.
"Arim, wait a moment!"
Aleksara and Alfentinius will go back and get the horses and the wagon.
Using one of the ropes from their supplies, Aleksara will toss one down end down to Arim to tie to the body, and the other Aleksara with fasten to the wagon.
"Al, set a gentle pace and we'll pull them both up!"
Arim gingerly lowers himself down into the hole falling the last few feet as a web gives way under his hand.
"there's a body down here! Chuck down a..."
He's cut off short as a length of rope catches him on the top of the head.
"thanks."
Tying the rope around the body and graving hold himself he gives it two sharp tugs to signal above to lift him up.
When Arim is dragged out of the hole he brings with him a dried husk of a corpse. The leather armor barely hangs onto the much thinner frame of what had once been a bandit and a short sword in its scabbard dangles from the belt. While recovering the few items of worth, 10gp jingle out of the left boot along with a crisply folded note. On the note is a crude coal sketch of a claw-shaped tree atop a barren hill. Beside it, scrawled in blood is a red "X".
"Hmmmm...that looks important! Think we can find the 'X' on the 'map' Wendell? With our luck lately, we will have to wade through en entire field of these trapdoor spiders to get to it!"
Aleksara is smiling at her perceived self-deprecating humor.
"You feeling alright Arim? You still look a little green around the gills from that spider-bite."
Alfentinius guides the horses as asked and then walks over to see what's been found.
Looking at the map with the others...
Huh... I think I remember hearing about that tree from some of the Mites at the Pig roast. They seemed to think it was haunted or was it infested... I did have allot to drink that night. Didn't think it was important, but this map changes things.
Alfentinius gets out our map and marks approximately where he thinks the clawed tree would be.
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"Spider's venom. Nasty s@~&, eh Arim? Could get someone to try'n suck it out, but it's prob'ly too late. I told Bokken t' start brewin' up some antivenom potions, but that's not likely t' help you now. Heh."
Wendell paces around the trap door and thinks well about the claw-shaped tree. Could it be the old sycamore? Was there another tree that itched his memory?
"Oh yeah, the pig roast..." Wendell fondly remembers being near death and laid up on the cart, thanks to the overachieving boars. He feels shame.
After digging through his memory, Wendell goes to dig through the dead Spider. Before touching the creepy beast he shoves a blade in deep between its eyes. Then he begins to remove anything of value: fangs, venom gland...
Looking down at the wound on his leg Arim smiles at the others.
"It's nothing. Now... where's this tree?"
Coiling the rope and stowing it on the wagon once more Arim mounts up
"Shall we get on?"
Indeed, Alfentinius was told many odd stories and superstitions that night by the excited and eccentric Mites. In line with such, this sketch is nearly exact to an image traced in the sand by a pair during the Great Pig Roast. Though it is the memories seared into Wendell, fever dreams of the landscape while lying in the cart that will haunt him forever, that give the last bit of insight and together Alfentinius and the dwarf are sure this tree stands no more than 12 miles from the Ol' Sycamore.
Wendell is able to remove the two venom sacks and keep them intact, though there is nothing else of value on the carcass.
As the convoy continues on to the planned campsite you are able to finish chartering this area. Aleksara makes note of another monolith. This one isn't near where you plan to build camp, but it does contrast remarkably on the landscape.
Aleksara will be intrigued by the stone monoliths, and will attempt to investigate further when she gets the chance.
"Let's get some rest. Tomorrow will be another rewarding day of toil and dust."
"Hah! Ain't that the truth."
If there was sarcasm in Aleksara's voice, Jerrik didn't notice it. He appreciated the days of hard, boring work and less excitement. He knew n the back of his mind that the fighting would come, but fighting meant danger, and he didn't want to see people hurt. The longer they went without battle, the safer he thought they were.
Despite plenty of training and schooling, Jerrik was still pretty green. His heart and his naivety along with it, would either be what saved him, or got him killed. Only time would tell.
Continuing on the next day, the heat picks up as the prairie begins to roll into the Kameland hills. After lunch the heat tries to lull all of you to sleep but luckily Arim spies a particularly rocky crag rising from the hills. At the crag’s base is an overgrown 5-foot-wide crack that leads down 20 feet to a 30-foot-diameter cave. The cave wall directly across from the entrance sparkles slightly