Soon after the morning sun breaks, and as the humans have just left to go back to their homes, you see what is most likely the manticore coming towards your encampment on the horizon.
What do you guys do? Last minute stuff? One more game of 'kick the human' with the cub? ;P
Shi will keep the cub occupied, and quiz it on tactics.
Shi will keep the cub occupied, and quiz it on tactics.
Seeing Shi'vatha working with the cub, Felicity will join in. One should always practice, both working as a team and working alone against multiple opponents.
Shi'Vatha looks at Felicity, then the cub, then Felicity. Then he grins at the cub, his blue tongue lolling out.
He leaps sideways and does a tumble to Felicity's other side, and whips out his paw in an opensided slap on her back.
But he misses horribly and slaps the ground instead.
Ganging up on me are you? Lets see you try that again.
Shi'Vatha does a backflip, and then does a double slap.
The first is a nice solid hit on the back, but the second one sends Felicity stumbling as it hits her at just the perfect point to push her off balance.
The manticore lands on the clearing in front of the cave entrance. Surveying the area, he sems pleased (or, at least as pleased as any parent would be). Looking down at you, he says, "I see that you have taken very good care of my cub."
Shi'Vatha nods. "He is a very good cub, although he needs to learn patience, and respect for danger, which will come with time, if he's properly trained and supervised." Shi hands over a small sprig of horseradish to the manticore. "For him, later. It seems to make him hyperactive, so I would not give it to him until later." Shi then takes a bite of a piece as well. "You have relocated your mate and babysitter then?"
The manticore takes the proffered horseradish and takes a small bite, still leaving plenty for his cub. Chewing on the herb, he says, "Yes we have. The journey was far, and the 'babysitter,' as you call him, seems afraid of the skies for some reason. Being that as it may, we are prepared to take the cub to his new home." Finishing his treat, the manticore motions for the cub to come over. Before the cub climbs on his back, the father says, "I am afraid that I will need to take 50 of the shinier coins from the stash...to placate the trainer. The rest, however, is yours." He then walks into the cave, back to where some of boulders are. The manticore rocks one of them back and forth until it tumbles over. Underneath, is a large, bowl shaped depression, maybe a foot deep at its lowest point. The 'bowl' contains many coins of various types, as well as a ring or two. The manticore deftly scoops up a small handful of gold coins, counts out 50 of them, and drops the rest back onto the pile.
With that, the father motions the cub to climb onto his back. The manticore then forms a face of a smile (or at least something that conveys happiness) and then, with a short run, takes off, soaring back into the air. Before you know it, he is gone.
Shi'Vatha looks at the coins, then the vanishing manticore. "Well, I am somewhat hopeful that the mandy core and the cub learned how better to deal with people. I am also somewhat hopeful that the towns folk have learned how better to handle drunkards." He sighs. "I am unfortunately unsure what to do with the 'payment' of the Mandy Core. The father has shown himself unworthy through his own actions, and gotten even more people killed. He would, I am sure, not use the money to restore the dead, if it is enough." He looks at the others, several having said the amount was unlikely to cover it. "I suppose we can keep it without it being wrong, there are no rights in this beyond what we have done that I can determine."
There is a ripple in Selene's shadowy form as she shrugs. "We did the work of finding the truth, protecting the cub, and even protecting the foolishness of the humans trying to follow their mob mentality. We've earned it."
There is a ripple in Selene's shadowy form as she shrugs. "We did the work of finding the truth, protecting the cub, and even protecting the foolishness of the humans trying to follow their mob mentality. We've earned it."
If we keep the funds for ourselves instead of healing that which was lost, we are little better than those who incited this riot. Perhaps the man will find balance if we make the arrangements.
"This coin will not be sufficient to 'heal' his lost wife and son. What arrangements can be made, other than telling him that the manticore is no longer a problem? Or are you planning on marrying the man and breeding a replacement child with him?"
Shi'Vatha smiles. "We should build a small memorial to the wife and son, one that tells the tale of their death, so that others might learn from the farmer's folly."
[dice=Spellcraft]1d20+6
Felicity watches as Shi'vatha gathers the coins. A memorial would be appropriate. If we cannot undo what has been done, at least we can attempt to prevent its recurrence.
Shi'Vatha spends 4 hours sorting and matching coins and then counting them. Then another hour counting them again to make sure he counted the right the first time.
When he's done, he looks the coins over. "There are 17,329 copper pieces, which weigh 346 and a half pounds. 15,283 of them display a man's visage with a hummingbird on the opposite side. 1,283 of them display a woman's visage with a peacock on the other side. 384 of them have the visage of a dragon's head on one side, and the visage of a dragon in flight on the other. 283 of them have the visage of man on one side, and a sea shell on the other. The remaining 96 are either unique or so worn that they cannot be determined to be of any specific make."
He waves a hand at the stacks of silver coins. "There are 4,852 silver coins weighing just over 97 pounds. 3,820 of them have a woman's visage on one side, and a fluted column motif on the other. 853 have a man's visage on one side, and a horse motif on the other. 150 have a woman's visage on one side, and a shark's fin in water on the other. The other 29 are either unique or have been to worn with age to tell their designs."
He then nods at the gold pieces. "There are 2,443 gold pieces, weighing just under 49 pounds. 1,673 of them have a man's visage on side, and a winged lion's visage on the other. 553 have a woman's visage on one side, and a tree motif on the other. 183 have a woman's visage on one side, and an octopus on the other. The remaining 34 are either unique or have been too worn to determine their origin."
He then nods at the small pile of platinum coins. "There are 48 platinum coins, weighing just under a pound. All 48 have the same design, a pyramid on one side with an eye at it's top, and on the other side an eagle with a small animal clutched in it's claws."
Selene snorts at the massive numbers of coins and the excessive description of them. "We may need a beast of burden to carry this anywhere where we can exchange it for something more... portable. The rings however," she says, snatching them up. "Probably have similar worth and are far easier to carry... well for those of us with fingers. This one," she says, holding up one of the rings, "is even magical, providing its wearer with a decent amount of protection."
Shi'Vatha spends 4 hours sorting and matching coins and then counting them. Then another hour counting them again to make sure he counted the right the first time.
When he's done, he looks the coins over. "There are 17,329 copper pieces, which weigh 346 and a half pounds. 15,283 of them display a man's visage with a hummingbird on the opposite side. 1,283 of them display a woman's visage with a peacock on the other side. 384 of them have the visage of a dragon's head on one side, and the visage of a dragon in flight on the other. 283 of them have the visage of man on one side, and a sea shell on the other. The remaining 96 are either unique or so worn that they cannot be determined to be of any specific make."
He waves a hand at the stacks of silver coins. "There are 4,852 silver coins weighing just over 97 pounds. 3,820 of them have a woman's visage on one side, and a fluted column motif on the other. 853 have a man's visage on one side, and a horse motif on the other. 150 have a woman's visage on one side, and a shark's fin in water on the other. The other 29 are either unique or have been to worn with age to tell their designs."
He then nods at the gold pieces. "There are 2,443 gold pieces, weighing just under 49 pounds. 1,673 of them have a man's visage on side, and a winged lion's visage on the other. 553 have a woman's visage on one side, and a tree motif on the other. 183 have a woman's visage on one side, and an octopus on the other. The remaining 34 are either unique or have been too worn to determine their origin."
He then nods at the small pile of platinum coins. "There are 48 platinum coins, weighing just under a pound. All 48 have the same design, a pyramid on one side with an eye at it's top, and on the other side an eagle with a small animal clutched in it's claws."...
You spend a good portion of the day watching Shi'Vatha count the coins, the piles growing higher and higher throughout the morning. It's a little daunting how a beast such as the manticore could have gathered so many coins over the years. Well, no matter.
As all of you contemplate how to get that much coinage back down the mountain, you can hear a faint yell. Looking out from the cave entrance, you can see Corian a few hundred feet below you on the hill. He is calling for you; as soon as he spots you, he starts trying to run up the hill, stumbling as he goes. He seems intent on getting to you.
Shi'Vatha will trot down to him, to help him up so he doesn't break his neck climbing so fast.
Both you and Corian meet near the middle. Pausing to catch his breath, Corian gasps, "The village, Fairhill, it's been sacked!"
Shi'Vatha shakes his head. "That drunken fool got everyone out just in time for it to be attacked, so no one was there to defend it. We will have to hurry. Come." He returns to the cave with Corian, and they can both fill in the others. "We will have to hope that our lost hunter returns on his own."
Felicity pauses, regarding Corian carefully. Sacked? By who. Did you witness the attackers? Were you injured?
Corian manages to finally catch his breath, then looks at Felicity. "It was orcs, several witnesses saw them. Apparently, their target with the temple...of Freya. I understand that there was a, um, something sacred, in the temple. There were many that were injured in the attack, including the bulk of the town guards. Nijena is doing what she can for them, and only a couple had actually died. However, the town seems to be more or less undefended until some of the guards get back on their feet. That's not the worst part, though."
"So due to the fact that much of the town had left to tilt at windmills, it was overrun by orcs? How is it that they were prepared for such an eventuality. One wonders whether someone helped rile the people up into a mob to cause them to leave the place undefended," Selene says.
"So what is 'the worst part', then?"
"Never apportion to malice what one can apportion to mortal stupidity." Shi intones toward Selene, the saying has weight to it, as if it were a phrase handed down throughout time by beings of spirit. "No one has ever lost betting on the stupidity of mortals as a group. Still, it could be a single individual who helped that stupidity along." He waits for the rest of the bad news.
"The worst part is, from what one of the guards had seen, it looks as if the orcs were heading back to an old keep. The one that we were supposed to go to."
Shi nods. "Ah, well then, that is a good thing. It makes getting the artifact back easier, as it combines our objectives into one objective." Shi says matter of factly, seeming pleased by the outcome.
If the orcs are moving to the keep, they may have the same objective. We cannot allow them any more of a head start than they already have. We should depart tonight.
Shi'Vatha nods. "We should put all this stuff in a bag or two and make do. We can bury it in the woods before we deal with the orcs, and come back for it later."
"That seems to be a fairly good idea, as long as we remember where it's buried and no one else finds it."
Burial should be as safe a method of storage as any. I will help dig.
It takes only a few minutes to find an appropriate spot to bury everything. An hour or so later, the deed is done. Corian knows the general way back, but you won't be back before midday, at least.
The last embers of the small fire Locke had built had dwindled to nothing, and a cool breeze swept through the camp, waking Locke up. Yawning, the young Northlander opened his eyes. The chain shirt beneath his sewn-together leather jacket rustled smoothly, cool against his woolen tunic.
Leisurely, Locke woke up and started breaking camp. Locke strapped his sword-the only thing that was worth keeping from his old life-to his hip. Locke scratched a sleeping snow leopard behind her ears. "Wake up, Divokost. Time to go."
While his only friend started to rise, Locke took a look around...
Divokost blearily opened her eyes, and saw her cub taking a lookout position. Yawning, she padded up to him, helping her cub look around.
Following behind Shi'vatha, Felicity begins the trek back to town, hoping the damage caused by the orcs is not too extensive.