"Interesting. Whatever is generating their abilities must be magical in origin. Fascinating." Kona is holding the book in his back left talon and writing with his right front talon. He is not looking at what he's writing, but you get the feeling that this is something he has practiced a great deal.
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Without a second thought Dashki grabs the Pugwampi from Gnasher, holds it by the legs and dashes it's head against the ground. You hear the crack if Bone and the aura disappears, the feeling of doom vanishes. Never keep these things alive... They are vermin of the worst kind. he then hands the limp thing back. It's head visibly smashed in.
That goat belongs to the Camel drivers... We should take it back...
Gurr grabs the rope and unties it from the pole and pulls the poor goat through the cactus but not too fast... taking his time to avoid the prickles, and the goat can do the same...
"Well, that was... unexpected." Abdalrahman extricates himself carefully from the cacti.
Yrdex looks at the crushed skull of the pugwampi. "That was awfully - eh, violent. It didn't even have a chance to see us before Poresh blasted it."
"რომ გაურკვეველი იყო, რომ არ მჯერა ვინმეს ზიანს აყენებდა." Gnasher snarls at Dashki, practically snatching the carcass from the human. He follows Gurr our of the thorns, asking the tribe. "Gnasher not know how to heal goat. Can someone help goat before Dashki change mind and kill it too?"
Gurrr growls and cuts the rope from the pole, holding the other end of it... then he yanks the goat toward the cactus... "Come with Gurrr, stoopid four-legs. Gurrr save you... or eat you. You choose."
Poresh glances at Yrdex. "I did what needed to be done. Your friend Dashki however was the one who ended things permanently much too soon." He helps Gurr with the goat, trying to soothe it against the goblin's pushiness.
"Your actions were understandable, Poresh." Yrdex eyes Dashki warily. "'Friend' is awfully strong word."
As the Dashki smashes the Pugwampi in the ground, Kona says "That was really unnecessary. We could have tried to communicate with it."
Gurrr is a bit gruff, but, knowing goats are herd critters, he does try to coax the goat to follow him, rather than dragging it along.
"Come on, little four-legs... me take you home."
'What is Gurrr doing?' Holding the body of the Pugwampi out away from his body, Gnasher calls out to Gurrr. "Don't halflings ride goats? Maybe goat expects Gurrr to ride? Maybe that problem. If Gurr need Help mounting Poresh could put Gurrr on goat."
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At the goblins soothing words the goat calms. It is actually rather s all for a goat, and you can tell it is mostly used for it's milk. The goat bleats and hesitates, but still doesn't make a move to follow. At least now it's not fighting you...
Dashki scoffs. You want to communicate with the rat... he goes to the rock the creature hid behind and pulls out a few unburnt cards. Here are the cards to prove it was at the wagon... Tell you what, go ahead and try to talk with the next rat you see, tell me how well it goes...
Abdalrahman stares at Dashki for a long moment.
"I do not like you, or your methods much." He turns to the group.
"That said... I have been trained by the Church of the Most Holy and Merciful Sarenrae to hunt monsters, and end them. And sometimes it is the best course of action to put them down as quickly as possible, both to grant them mercy, and to save yourself from whatever harm they can cause. To that end, I cannot fault his decision."
At the mention of the word 'Monsters' Kona will pipe up and say "Is Gnasher one of your monsters? Am I? Should not a follower of Sarenrae let someone's actions tell you whether they are worthy of respect or revilement? What if this creature was doing what it was doing exactly BECAUSE of attitudes like this, which are just backwards and don't help anyone." Kona puts away his notebook and walks back towards the caravan in a huff.
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Dashki shakes his head and you head back to the caravan. When you arrive, everyone is ready to move on. The mercenaries are all having a good time by playing some sort of card game, making a ruckus.
Hadrah and Hadrod see you and the goat, and come over in such a rush that they make Dashki flinch in surprise. By the gods you've found Rombard! How can we ever thank you, -oh I have some gold I can give them! the two of them are barely understandable, finishing each other's sentences. Hadrod(the man) Quickly hands you a bag of coins, inside is about 13gp, 24sp, and 5cp. They Thank you more and take their goat, making sure to let you know how greatful they are by offering some goat cheese.
you report to Almah. Hmm... Well this is a Pugwampi? she asks. Looking at the corpse curiously. Garavel takes the body and examines it. There must be more in the area... After all there can't just be one. Dashki did mention they like to hang around gnoll communities. as the older man says this Dashki nods and crosses his arms. Almah sighs, rubbing her temples. Alright, now that we have solved this crime, let's get down to the real reason we are here... To retake a city. Garavel, what do you know?.
The older man hands the body to Dashki who nods and leaves the tent. The older man then says his due, first, the sultan's claw is exposed, we can't remain here long without someone noticing. And unfortunately the gnoll have fortified the roads leading into Kelmarane. says the older man.
Almah nods and pulls out a map. If I read this properly, a Temple to the goddess Sarenrae lies here. And the gnoll have left this untouched, yes? Garavel nods. No idea why, possibly because they fear Angering the goddess... Almah nods and turns to the party. Better safe than sorry, You- head up to the temple and scout it out. Clear it of whatever is keeping the gnolls away and we will use the temple as a base of operations. Am I clear?
"The gnolls hold the rest of the city? Do they allow visitors or will we need to sneak our way in? Gnasher, do you know anything about these gnolls?"
'I have been called 'Monster' by many, but they still trade with me. But I would like to hear Abdalrahman answer to the question.' Gnasher's ears perk up as Kona asks his question. As the leave, Gnasher, in a very human fashion, nudges Abdalrahman with his elbow. He lulls his tongue in his Gnoll smile. "ნუ შეწუხდები მასთან. ალბათ, არ ესმის, როგორ მუშაობს რეალური სამყარო.გახსოვდეთ, რომ ახლა მონსტრები ასოცირდება."
Watching the thankful couple pay Gurrr for returning their goat, Gnasher once again smiles his gnoll smile "Goat herders must not know tribe monsters!"
Handing the pugwampi to Garavel, he nods his head in agreement when he comments about more in the area. Scowling at Dashki as he leaves, Gnasher, familiar with maps, pays careful attention to the places Almah points out.
Gnasher snarls slightly in response to Poresh. "Gnasher knows Gnolls serve carrion king." He then spits on the floor, showing his disgust.
Before the team leaves Gnasher points to the temple of Sarenrae and asks. "If inhabitants are enemy to Gnoll, make friendly trade? Or root out, no matter what?"
Gurrr takes the coin from the longshanks and puts the pouch inside one of his own...
At Poresh's question, Gurrr offers: "Me good at sneaking.. me can sneak in!"
The small reptilian creature nods thoughtfully as Almah lays out the plan. "Understood." This will be a good opportunity to demonstrate Aspu's power.
Having calmed down during the walk back to the caravan, Kona will smile at the couple when they happily see the return of their goat and say "I am glad we were able to help you!"
Inside the tent, when discussions of the temple of Sarenrae begin, Kona will say "Are you certain it is okay for us to enter the temple? I would hate for the church of Sarenrae to think that we are defiling the place with our presence, or somesuch."
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Almah looks at Kona a bit confused. I don't see why our presence would harm anything, besides, the building was mostly an academy, used for training preists and such. I have no doubt that we can enter without provoking the wrath of the goddess, for I am a worshiper... And I know at least one of you is as well.
'Good, she is a smart merchant, no need to kill someone we might be able to do business with. Especially if they may help us.' Gnasher nods his head in understanding, then looks at the rest of the 'tribe' to see if any of them have any more questions for their employer.
"Excellent. I say we head out now when we don't have to deal with the oppressive heat. Objections?"
"I am a follower of Sarenrae, and while I have no authority to speak for the church, I don't see them having an issue with this, based on my experiences."
He turns to look at Yrdex and Kona, and looks down for a moment before speaking again. "If I caused offense with my comment about "monsters", I apologize. It was said in the heat of the moment. The truth is..." he pauses and looks over at Gnasher before continuing, "...I was raised and trained by the church to hunt evil non-humans who threaten civilization. "Monster" was the term often used. In my own case, I was specifically taught to hunt and kill gnolls. And I received some of that training FROM a gnoll who recognized the threat that others of his kind can present. But I have learned, both from him and over time, that... not all kobolds or goblins or gnolls or dragons are monsters. I don't see any of you that way, and I am truly sorry if that is how it seemed."
With that, he falls quiet again, still staring at the ground with a far-off look in his eyes.
Poresh nods to Yrdex's suggestion. "The cover of darkness will aid us in sneaking as well. Let's be on our way."
'So we are underway.' Gnasher bows to Almah and Garavel, lulling his tongue in a gnoll smile. "Mistress, Sir, we Monsters shall go and find temple of Sarenrae." Winking, In a very human way at Abdalrahman, he turns to leave.
As dusk sets in Gnasher asks Abdalrahman, "Do you have way to make light? It will be dark soon." Spreading one hand toward the camels. "Does tribe ride, and leave someone to guard camel, or does tribe walk?"
Gnasher's question regarding light catches the kobold by surprise. "Oh, I didn't think about the fact that some of our members may not be accustomed to the dark. I'm afraid I have no means of producing light - not even a torch." Yrdex shrugs apologetically.
'There it is, Is there anyone there? why would they leave the doors open in gnoll country.' Gnasher, clicks his tongue and pulls the rein twice, causing his camel to stop and kneel. The gnoll dismounts his camel and awaits the group.
Once everyone is ready Gnasher points at the front door. "Does tribe go directly in, or search perimeter first?"
Poresh's eyes are accustomed to low light, but the darkness is beyond him. He casts light on the tip of his longspear, holding it out in front of him as they explore the chapel.
"Abdalrahman, I gladly accept your apology. Perhaps I overreacted, but there were plenty of times where I heard that term bandied about during my pathfinder training, so I might be a bit sensitive about it. Let's just all agree to treat each other with respect and we shall get along famously, I'm sure."
"I'm pretty sure that something was said about guards at the temple? Perhaps we should just go in and speak to them plainly?"
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Scrub brush and a light, patchy carpet of weeds invade the monastery through two huge fallen sections of the western wall. The exposed nave beyond is a huge hallway littered with bits of debris ranging from tiny rocks to enormous sections of collapsed masonry. Most of the roof above the long promenade is gone, but several jagged pillars remain.
It appears to be abandoned. There are three doors to the South, and the chapel is clearly visible to the east.it is about 50 ft away, and past the edges of the light. There are alcoves to either side of the chapel entrance, you can't see into them from here. One of the doors to the South opens to a hall, the closest is closed and the farthest is too far to see whether it's open or not... The building is strangely cool. At least it's a reprieve from the heat of the sun.
As Poresh enters the temple, Yrdex turns to Gnasher. "You big folk take Kona and head inside." He shifts his attention to Gurrr. "Let's snoop around."
Gurrr nods enthusiastically... and works with Yrdex to scout the place out...
He's very sneaky, but not so perceptive...
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Inside the Monastery it is silent. Light hits the walls where paintings of preists and Saints are shown. Their faces unrecognizable due to the wearing caused by the lack of a roof.
Yrdew rests a claw on Gurrr's shoulder. "Do you feel that? Another one of those pug-whatsits.." His thin lips curl into a frown. "I don't see anything else, though. Think we should head back to the big folks?
Gnasher, stops outside the chapel, shaking his head. "Tribe strongest when together, we should wait for hobbits."
"I agree. Let our scouts do their work."
Yrdex returns to the rest of the party after having made a full loop of the temple. "I didn't see anything out there, but I could feel one of those pug things' aura." He casts a wary glance across the surrounding desert. "Would you like us to scout the inside or should we enter as a 'tribe'?" The kobold winks at Gnasher.
Poresh waits for the sneaky ones to report with the others. He holds his light up to each of the paintings in turn. "The damage here is quite extensive. Unfortunate."
'More Pugwampis, no wonder this place is abandoned.' Lulling his tongue in his Gnoll smile, Gnasher shakes his head no, "No tribe need to support Poresh, light tell pugwampi's we are here already."
He thinks for a moment, "Let Gnasher and Abdalrahman go in with more light. Then Yrdex, Grrr and Kona come in quickly after. Maybe light blind Pugwampi's to little ones presence. Let them sneak up on Pugwampis." He looks to the others to see if they like the idea.
He then begins to move toward the same opening Poresh entered. turning back to the three, "Do not be too long." Then asking Abdalrahman, "Can Abdalrahman make light?"
'Maybe we can make the pugwampis think it is just the three of us.' As he enters the building he loudly calls to Poresh, 'Poresh wait for Gnasher and Abdalrahman."
Kona puts away his writing supplies, nods, and says "Let's go with that."