Kilarra rolls her eyes. "Oh, yeah. We're gonna be great friends. I can tell."
She pulls over a small table, then pulls a half drank bottle of whiskey, a few cups, and a deck of cards out of her backpack. Come on, then. Sidle up. You can mope alone or drink with me. What'll it be?"[/b]
She shuffles the cards while watching the dwarf.
”So, as I see it I have three choices.” Bharaz said. ”I can sit here alone. I can make a wrong move and the elf there will have me head. Or...we can drink.” He made a show of considering it. ”Well, drink and cards it is.” He walked over and sat down. ”What’s the game of choice then?”
"Attaboy," Kilarra replies with a smirk. "You know Crowns? They play it in Taldor." She pours a few drinks and deals the cards while explaining the game. After showing him a demo hand, she shuffles again, deals again, and settles in to play.
"So what brings a you on this suidice mission, Bharaz? Is your dead brother really worth dying for?"
She places down a card. "Nine. Your go."
"You do know this is a suicide mission, right? Those of us with any sense don't expect to survive."
”Aye, that he is.” Bharaz said, with dead seriousness. ”He was more than family. We were rebuilding our clan together. Putting our name back together. It was his goal, really. His passion. And the fookers...” His voice got darker as he spoke ”...they killed him like it was nothing. He was just in the bloody way. So aye. It’s worth dying for. I can’t tell ye how many times we put our lives on the line together. It was worth dying for then, and it’s bloody well worth it now.” He slapped a card down. ”Ten!” And took a deep breath. ”Sorry. Getting mad ain’t gonna help, and I’ve made a poor enough impression already. So, what about ye? If ye know it’s suicide, what brought ya to this?”
Kilarra smirks. "I'd like to go down swinging."
"So what exactly does 'rebuilding a clan' entail? You go on a hunt for some fine dwarven lasses or something? Find land, start a mine?"
"Seven. I drink. Your go."
She takes a shot of whiskey and pours some more, sliding one over to Bharaz.
”Ye don’t.” He took a sip. ”Used to think so. Droskar’s Crag took out most of the clan and all of our holdings. Left the few survivors with a name and titles to lands buried under tons of lava. Me brother and I spent decades picking through the ruins, bringing back lost relics and artifacts. Started doing it with the dream with with a big enough find we’d earn the wealth and prestige needed for new lands and titles. After awhile I realized that it was enough to earn coin, but that’s it. Me brother never stopped believing. I was the muscle and he was the brains. It was my job to keep him safe. The day he died, we had finally earned an audience with Lord Borogrim himself. We were gifting him with the Scepter of Gardrick I. He hoped that in return we’d be given what we were looking for. A mantis killed him on our way to present it. He died with a smile on his face, never saw it coming. I killed the assassin, but it felt...hollow. Like I broke a weapon, nay the one who wielded it. Lord Borogrim, he asked me what he could give. And I said vengeance. Because I angry. And because it felt like cheating to ask for our goal when he had died right before...bah. The answer is I’m a fool, who spent so long chasing a dream, that I threw it away to avenge someone already dead. Anyways, I’m rambling. But that’s the long and short of it. I asked for Vengeance, and this was Lord Borogrim’s way of granting me wish. Took a fook load of politics, but in the end he got me here.”
Talia closes her eyes for a moment in reflection. The dwarf seemed to be telling the truth, and it had been a long long time since someone had successfully managed to lie to her. That didn't mean that it couldn't happen, but it would be a gamble for an assassin to match their talent for deceit against her talent for seeing right through people when the stakes for failure were life and death.
Furthermore, Talia also thought it was unlikely that an assassin would be so bold as to wait up in their rooms and address them by name - it would be much easier for the Red Mantis to just send a small army to kill them if they had discovered where they were staying. Plus, the Mantis knew that Talia had the ability to see the past (or something similar) and would know that a charade would be difficult to maintain against this. So, on balance she thought the threat was still there, but low.
Rolling her her eyes slightly at Kilarra's remark, she matches her smirk with one of her own "You are anything but quiet" she gripes in good-natured fashion before she moves, lightly touching Uruelleth on the shoulder "Relax a little Uruelleth, we will know more in the morning. You should get some rest as well as me" she remarks before heading off to get some much needed sleep.
Uruelleth grits his teeth in frustration as Talia whispers to him. "Not that I'm going to say no to another fighter, but I don't know if we should take the risk, you know? One really good liar could slit all our throats better than a hundred assassins attacking us en masse.
He shrugs helplessly. "But I want to believe him. Am I that stupid?"
He sighs again and tries to get some sleep before it's time to relieve Kilarra.
Talia smiles faintly "You are not being stupid Uruelleth. Its been a small group of us for so long against such a large organisation that its normal to want more allies or assistance to make things easier. I'm not saying not to be vigilant, but try not to trouble yourself too much." she finishes, before letting Uruelleth get some sleep.
Uruelleth concedes, nodding as he heads to his room for a little sleep before he relieves Kilarra. "All right. Keep yourself safe, since I can't go before Gorum saying I died to a dwarf."
After a few hours, he rouses himself and checks on Kilarra and Bharaz.
Before going to sleep, Bharaz said ”Name of trust, a few things. One, got me a ring. With it on I don’t need food or water, and only need two hours of sleep a night. I’ll take it off tonight, as ye lot don’t seem fond of the idea of me being awake when yer not. And second...” He took out his knife and dropped it. When it hit the ground it vanished and reappeared back in the sheath. He took it out again, only this time it vanished while in his hand. ”I’m never unarmed.” He said, meaningfully. The elf was making him nervous. ”That said, I’ll sleep this night only. Will likewise trust ye to leave me unharmed.”.
——
When Uruelleth checks on him, he finds Bharaz sound asleep.
Uruelleth stays vigilant despite the dwarf's deep slumber. He folds his arms and keeps watch, occasionally checking the door and windows for signs of attackers coming from other directions.
When his shift ends, he wakes Talivar and has him continue the watch. He then slips into Kilarra's bed for the rest of the night.
The night passes uneventfully and the morning of the raid arrives. With Makkatat's time growing short, this is likely your only chance to retrieve what you need to save him.
Spell-Like Abilities (CL 10th; concentration +15)
1/day—daylight
Shaman Spell-Like Abilities (CL 10th; concentration +15)
Constant—endure elements
Shaman Spells Prepared (CL 10th; concentration +15)
5th—persistent image (DC 20), stoneskin, teleport; contact other plane[S] or overland flight[S]
4th—emergency force sphere, enervation (2), spell immunity; legend lore[S] or rainbow pattern[S] (DC 19)
3rd—akashic communion, magic circle against evil, stone shape (2); daylight[S] or locate object[S]
2nd—barkskin (2), resist energy (3); hypnotic pattern[S] (DC 17) or tongues[S]
1st—barbed chains[HA] (2, DC 16), blood money, heightened awareness[ACG] (2), unbreakable heart[ISWG]; color spray[S] (DC 16) or identify[S]
0 (at will)—create water, dancing lights, detect magic, guidance
S spirit magic spell; Spirit Heavens Wandering Spirit Lore
As Talia’s vision forms she finds herself deep within a dwarven city, the splendor of which can only mean that it is part of the royal quarters. Her Vision begins in the shadows, hanging from one of the pillars. She can hear voices below, saying that once a pair of dwarves pass the runes on the floor, that the gates will open.
Two dwarves walk below. One is clearly Bharaz, dressed in the regalia of a nobleman. The other dwarf is laughing, going on about the history of a scepter and it’s importance, and is dressed like a scholar. That dwarf has a large and ornate box in his hands. Neither are armed.
Suddenly everything is a bar. The two dwarves passed the runes and the gates began to open. Talia finds herself falling from the pillar, a pair of sawblades suddenly in her hands. Landing behind the two dwarves there is a blur of movement. The scholar’s head comes off, and the one in noble-garb is left bleeding on the floor. The latter was taller and the sword didn’t catch the next. With both on the ground, Talia finds herself running towards the now-open gates. Just as she gets there she falls, hitting the ground. Looking down she can see clearly that her arms and weapons are that of a Mantis Assassin. Turning over to see where the attack came from, the last thing she sees is Bharaz, covered in blood and with a look of pain, shock, grief, and anger on his face. A dagger reforms in his hands and he throws it again. The vision comes to a sudden end.
Bharaz woke up with a yawn and a stretch. He slipped his ring back on, as the unfamiliar pang of hunger hit him. He’d only slept because these assassin-hunters would probably have killed him if they didn’t. And the idea of coming all this way only to be killed by an elf? When he got to the halls of the ancestors, his brother would never let him unlive it down.
He kept his mouth shut as he waited for the others to decide on whether they’d accept him, send him back, or whether he’d need to go down fighting. At the last he smirked to himself. If they tried he was more than ready to just teleport away. That was the reason why he had only shown his knife trick the night before. To survive, he needed to keep some of his powers secret.
Talia wakes up in the morning, arching her back and doing a few stretches before she dumps water on herself with her Create Water cantrip. She washes her hair before gathering it together and pushing it behind her shoulders. Once done, she sits cross-legged on the bed and begins to meditate, spending twenty minutes focusing on her visions.
Once done, she meets up with the others to give them an update.
"Well, Bharaz isn't lying about killing a few Red Mantis. I cannot completely confirm that the Red Mantis killed his brother but they definitely killed a dwarf that was travelling with him so it looks like the story checks out. I mean, if I was being ultra paranoid I could come up with a conspiracy theory that the Red Mantis allowed him to kill some of their own agents so that he could look like a legitimate prospect but you could apply that story to pretty much all of us. At some point, we have to trust him and life and death situations always allow people to show their true colors. I'm in favor of bringing him along tonight, he could be useful" Talia finishes, before turning and spearing the dwarf with a firm gaze.
"That said, Bharaz if you come along you have to meet one condition. I want you to tell me if creating and using weapons are the complete limits of your abilities or if there are any other tricks up your sleeve. If I'm making a plan, I like to know what tools we have available. Do we have a deal?"
Bharaz looked at Talia, and then the others. After a moment, he nodded. ”It’s not the limit. First of all, I can make nearly any weapon that I know how to use. But daggers are the easiest, and most powerful.” As a way of explanation, his dagger vanished and an axe formed. That too disappeared, and a new dagger formed on his belt. ”Each time I make it, I can choose whether it is made with fire, electricity, or the chill of winter within it.” He took a deep breath and then continued. ”I can also perform magic a limited number of times per day. Three times is the most I’ve managed so far. I can heal the wounded, cure diseases, dispel magic, teleport meself and whatever I touch, move things with me mind, see things that are invisible, go invisible, and I can fly. Can explain more details later, but that is the gist of it. All are useful, but I need to be careful on what I use the power on, as it runs out fast. On top of that, as I said before, due to me ring I don’t need food or drink, and only two hours of sleep. Cause of this stone here, the weather doesn’t bother me. And me armor is enchanted.” As he said this, he let the glammer fade. As he did so a sturdy breastplate appeared on his chest. ”Like me clothes it changes appearance. All of this has made adventuring easier. Keeps me safe from knives in the dark and mundane matters like hypothermia, heat stroke, starvation and thirst. Also useful for not being a target of greedy fookers looking to rob those coming back from ruins with loot. And aye, this pouch here holds as much as a backpack. Useful for not being seen.” He took off his sleeves and his clothes vanished, showing that he, in reality, merely wore simple pants and a sleeveless shirt. It also showed that his arms were much stronger than he looked in full traveling clothes. He put the sleeves back on, and his outfit changed to that of a courtier, with the breastplate matching. He took them off again, and finally put them back on, going back to the appearance that he had been first seen in. ”Me holy symbol also helps me aim. Ye’ll notice that whenever I attack anything is glows. If it wants to it can also float on it’s own. It is a reminder that I do Torag’s work, and that he both protects and judges.”
He took a deep breath, his speech coming to an end. ”For the most part I’m a good shot with me knives, with some magical tricks to keep me and me comrades out of trouble. That’s all I got. Can’t think of anything else I can say at this point. Didn’t say any of this before, ‘cause if ye tried to kill me I wanted a way out.”
Uruelleth wakes up, pleased to still be alive. He joines Talia and the others as she reports on her visions of Bharaz. He had decided last night after watching the dwarf sleep that he would trust Talia's visions, whatever they showed. If she said he needed to die, he would kill him; if she said he was telling the truth, he would trust him.
Talia said he was telling the truth. Then, of course, she kept talking. Dammit. Now he had the idea that the bugs could have staged the vision just to fool Talia. He grits his teeth and seethes while Bharaz tells them of his capabilities.
Making weapons out of thin air seems useful, but daggers and other small weapons was a surprise. Most dwarves he had fought in Belkzen favored heavy axes and hammers. Throwing knives seemed... human. He wonders... naah.
Then he talked about the spells he could cast. Useful. They already had Talivar and Talia to cast spells -- to say nothing of Uruelleth's own spells -- but magic always has the capability to swing a battle. The more on their side, the better.
When Bharaz finishes, Uruelleth looks at Talia, Talivar and Kilarra. He'd done as Talia had asked, so to keep her bargain they would be bringing him along as they attacked the Pagoda today.
"All right. Welcome to the Pact. Who wants to fill him in?"
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After a moments silence, Talia steps forward slightly, nodding her head. 'I'll bring him up to speed, but I'll skim over some of the things we have done so far otherwise we might be here all day."
"As you may know, we have been on the island for a decent period of time. The Mantis are everywhere, and while we have had several significant kills, most of our work has been focused around getting allies so that we can challenge them a little more openly. We first helped the Kaneano tribe out on Sharkfin Island and they are willing to assist..but they want an indication that beating the Mantis is possible, a decisive event that inflicts a severe blow onto them. We tried an alliance with the Pirate Lords as well but I f~#+ed that up so its going to be harder to get their assistance. Like the Kaneano tribe though, inflicting a decisive blow against the Mantis might encourage some of them to ally with us, whereas other Pirate Lords are almost certainly working for the Red Mantis"
"At some future point, we will almost certainly strike out at the Red Mantis on Mosquito Island (their training base) with the help of the Kaneano but we have currently an alliance with the kobold Thunderscale tribe - trying to stamp out the goblin tribes. The goblins are led by someone called Firesinger, and crushing them will eliminate the jungle information network that the Red Mantis rely on. We are in the city right now for healing magic since the kobold leader Makkatat is injured and requires healing, before we march on the goblin capital. Initial visions indicate that a Vernai is also waiting for us at the goblin capital, no doubt hoping for an easy assassination"
"As for other things to be aware of, there is a secret Nocticula Cult active in the city at the moment. I'm hoping that we can also meet up with them and start an alliance with them but they are very cautious. Ther is a dwarf as well called Goldshackle that runs a slave trade in the city thats financed by the Red Mantis, and I'd like to destroy that as well - if nothing else it hurts the Red Mantis which is reason enough to consider. There is a druid I spoke to seemed to indicate she might help with that, but I'd need to confirm to be sure. Finally there is a stash of treasure stashes on Mosquito island which we might want to look into at some point, but its guarded by a banshee. Lastly, there is a weird hermit that sits by his own that we met, but its hard to know who or what he actually is."
Talia’s vision blurs before clearing again to find her staring at herself across the room. To her left sit the two men she was interested in. Up close, she’s able to hear what they were saying. She’s quite certain that, without magical means, she would never have been able to hear them. They almost seem trained at how to speak so they can only hear each other.
Talia notices that her vision seemed to start shortly before she ordered them drinks.
The first man, darker skinned with a full beard, whispers to his companion, “The Stalkers have been pushing in lately. You think they actually mean it?”
His companion, a tanned man whose complexion seems… off… in some way, replies, “Who knows? They do this every few months. It’s not just us. If they mean it, it’s probably about taking over some other rival’s territory. We would be their last targets unless they’re idiots.”
The first says, “I suppose you’re right. Maybe I’ve just been jumpy lately.”
“It’s not just you. With this new group in the city, and whatever in the nine hells is going on in the jungle, it’s enough to make any reasonable person jumpy.”
Their conversation is interrupted as the barmaid brings the drinks Talia ordered and points her out to the men. They both put on friendly faces as they nod towards the Talia across the room.
The bearded man says, “You think she’s with the Stalkers?”
The tanned man replies, “Doubtful. It’s not like them to try to intimidate through kindnesses. Could just be friendly.”
“Please. In this town? Next to impossible. You think she could be with the bloods? When was our last run in?”
“It’s been months. And we removed the loose lips, remember? Maybe don’t read too deeply into a couple drinks.”
The bearded man glances outside and seems to realize the time. He says, “We should get going. We’re supposed to be discussing the hit on Kaleidoscope.”
The other man shakes his head. “We’ve been talking about that hit for months. No, years. It’s never going to happen. Too big.”
“We’ll see,” is all the bearded man says in reply.
The two men exit out of the tavern and the vision fades.
You awaken to a throbbing pain at the back of your head. You’re also in near total darkness, or were struck blind. It’s hard to tell at first. As your head grows clearer, the pain doesn’t go away, but you realize your sight is still intact. Little bits of light shine through the darkness. You’re apparently in a bag. You try to move but find your hands are tied tightly behind your back and your feet are tied just as tightly.
Nearby, you hear the sound of something large moving. You’re not alone. Whatever it is seems to be heading your way as the noise continues to grow louder. The person or thing picks you up off the ground and it seems it will have its way with you when a commotion sounds from further away.
With the raid planned, you put your plan into action. Talia creates a distraction for the guards and Talivar covers the entrance to the side door, making sure your presence goes unnoticed for as long as needed.
Just as you’re about to venture inside, something catches Talivar’s eye. An expression of shock and disbelief, comes across his face and he hurries off.
Before you have a chance to consider chasing after him, you come face to face with the apparent threat Betty vaguely referred to. A giant praying mantis looms inside the room, taking up at least half of the space within. The creature stretches up high, at least to what would be considered the second story of the Pagoda. In its claw is a bag with something medium humanoid-sized inside.
The praying mantis drops the bag, causing it to fall a few feet to the ground. Then the bug turns to face you. The mantis is a giant foe and also appears to be a deadly one.
Achutla grunts as he hits the ground. He pushes against the cloth experimentally, seeing if he can tear it open with his claws.
Kilarra focuses on the mantis's movements then dives forward -- in the hopes she doesn't get gutted by a bug before even reaching the thing. She comes up in a roll and is back on her feet in a flash. With a pair of sawtooth sabres in hand she slashes at the giant mantis.
The bag proves more sturdy that Achutla might have expected as his claws don’t seem to do anything. From outside the bag, the rest of you notice that something seems to be moving inside.
Kilarra focuses on the mantis's movements then dives forward -- in the hopes she doesn't get gutted by a bug before even reaching the thing. She comes up in a roll and is back on her feet in a flash. With a pair of sawtooth sabres in hand she slashes at the giant mantis.
The mantis, temporarily caught off guard, receives a nasty strike from Kilarra. It doesn’t look at all pleased. Up close, Kilarra also notices other wounds that don’t appear to have completely healed. It seems the mantis has been in another fight not long before.
Praying Mantis retaliates Kilarra’s strike with a few of its own. The colossal creature savages the slayer. With its second claw strike, Kilarra’s wounds prove too much for her to stay upright and she collapses to the ground unconscious.
"F$!$ me thats big" Talia mutters glancing up at the huge Mantis with the gigantic claws. The shaman experiences a moment of worry when the creature tears into Kilarra but remains confident in the magical protections she had given her. She swiftly hurls a bolt of Misfortune at the creature, trying to cripple its ability to fight.
Uruelleth's blood boils in fury at the sight of the giant mantis. He moves forward, his form blurring as he does, and brings his falchion down hard on it.
Bharaz, for his part, reached down at his side. In one fluid motion he had a dagger in his hand. There was nothing fancy about what he did. He didn’t spin, or jump, or have any flair. Rather he just brought his arm back, took a step forward, and threw the dagger....
...twice the daggers flew, each time hitting with the force of a weapon of much greater size. Usually one thought of daggers as being a weapon which required finesse. It was clear that in Bharaz’s hands, they were more about the application of raw power.
Kilarra smirks at the mantis -- then raises an eyebrow at the dagger that plunges into the mantis' carapace with enough force to sever a human's head right off. She spares a glance back at the dwarf. "If you hit me with one of those, I'll ram it down your throat!"
Turning back to the mantis, she swings her sabres in a flurry of fluid motions.
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As he comes to understand that there is some kind of conflict happening outside his bag universe, Achutla tenses, hoping that no one noticed him until he can asses what is going on.
Talia mutters, "F%#* me thats big" at the huge Mantis with the gigantic claws. The shaman experiences a moment of worry when the creature tears into Kilarra but remains confident in the magical protections she had given her. She swiftly hurls a bolt of Misfortune at the creature, trying to cripple its ability to fight. She succeeds.
Bharaz, for his part, reached down at his side. In one fluid motion he had a dagger in his hand. There was nothing fancy about what he did. He didn’t spin, or jump, or have any flair. Rather he just brought his arm back, took a step forward, and threw the dagger....
...twice the daggers flew, each time hitting with the force of a weapon of much greater size. Usually one thought of daggers as being a weapon which required finesse. It was clear that in Bharaz’s hands, they were more about the application of raw power. Both find their target, sinking deep into the praying mantis.
Achutla, as he comes to understand that there is some kind of conflict happening outside his bag universe, tenses, hoping that no one noticed him until he can assess what is going on.
Uruelleth's blood boils in fury at the sight of the giant mantis. He moves forward, his form blurring as he does, and brings his falchion down hard on it. Very hard. The bloodrager nearly severs one of the mantis’s claws and one of its legs from the single attack. But it doesn’t seem affected by his fey magic.
Kilarra smirks at the mantis -- then raises an eyebrow at the dagger that plunges into the mantis' carapace with enough force to sever a human's head right off. She spares a glance back at the dwarf. "If you hit me with one of those, I'll ram it down your throat!"
Turning back to the mantis, she swings her sabres in a flurry of fluid motions. Two strikes find their marks, injuring the creature further. It looks greatly wounded, but it’s not dead yet.
Praying Mantis turns its fury on Uruelleth, striking at the bloodrager three times.
Only one of its claws manages to strike the elf, but it’s enough to pick him up off his feet. The mantis looks like it’s selected its next meal.
Achutla keeps still, straining his ears to figure how many new Mantis warriors he will need to fell, or maybe, that somehow something different is happening for once. That someone other than himself would dare to assault the Red Mantis directly. Still your foolish hopeful heart. They are undoubtedly foes.
Two more daggers slammed into the mantis. As they did so, Bharaz grumbled ”Oh, aye. Threaten the dwarf. Ye’d need to bloody be able to hold it to do so.” As before, it was the same dagger being thrown. The dagger went in with the power of a ballista, and once it had hit it would vanish and reappear back on Bharaz’s belt.
The mantis' attack is off by mere inches as it struck at the hazy outline surrounding the bloodrager. Uruelleth snorts in amusement and brings his blade down twice more.
He shouts, "Talivar! You're missing all the fun!"
"Not if I make you hold it, then ram it down your throat!" Kilarra retorts as she takes another careful step to the side -- though its obvious from the force of the dagger strikes Kilarra's couldn't outmuscle the dwarf.
Kilarra swings her blades out at the creature, determined to take it down before it guts someone.
Between Bharaz, Kilarra, and Uruelleth, the deadly mantis meets its end. The dwarf pins the insect against one of the room’s walls while Kilarra chops off its legs. Uruelleth gets the honor of chopping off the bug’s head, definitively ending the threat.
With the immediate threat gone, you have a chance to examine your surroundings a bit more closely. The room you’re in is at least 2 stories high, but it’s a bit hard to tell exactly how tall given the building’s tapered design. It also seems Betty’s intelligence was correct. You don’t see any other exits out of the room besides the way you came in. It seems to be sealed off from the rest of the Pagoda.
The room itself seems to be a store room of sorts, recently converted to serve as a home for the praying mantis. A few bloody bones rest in one corner.
All manner of food and drinks line the walls. Most seem to be rather mundane. A quick Detect Magic shows that to be true. However, among the mundane, there are a few items of note, a few different magical scrolls, along with a letter. The letter is in an envelope which bears a wax seal displaying two crossed sawtooth sabres.
Additionally, along one wall of the room, is a book shelf that is at least six feet long and six feet high. It’s filled with books big and small. One of these must be the tome Betty wanted you to retrieve.
The sack the praying mantis had been holding when you entered lies still on the ground. There’s also still no sign of Talivar.
Talia glances at the bag that was (up until recently) still moving. "Someone check the bag, it was moving previously but now seems pretty still. So there is something at least semi intelligent inside."
Talia turns and smoothly examines the scrolls and the letter. She takes careful preparation by scanning items with magic aura, hunting for the regenerate spell. She takes the scrolls and letter (if satisfied its not trapped) before turning her attention to the bookshelf.
Talia scans the small library, trying to take notice of the various titles on the spines. She looks for Betty's book, as well as The Red Chronicles, Volume One. She also takes a look at the various titles, looking at subject matter, trying to see if the books contain any information on interesting topics that might prove useful.
Hearing the fighting noises come to an end, and then Talia's comment, Achutla decides to take a risk. "Hello? Who iss there? Vile Mantis, or unexpected friendss?"
Between panting breaths, Uruelleth says, "Well, it talks, whatever it is."
He moves up to the bag, noticing that its contents are now struggling. "No 'vile Mantis' here, for the moment. Hold still." He catches a seam of the bag with the tip of his still-bloody falchion and starts to rip it open.
Seeing it to be a lizard-folk, he switches to Draconic. <It's one of the scaled-ones. May the sun warm your blood.>
<And your skin, Elf. Thank you.>
Achutla sits up and looks around, taking in the scene before him. "Am I still in the Red Mantiss Pagoda? Who are you?" he asks as he rubs his wrists.
This lizardfolk is unlike the members of the greenscale tribe. His scales are a mottled grey. He is quite large and muscular, and has a more draconic look. He is currently naked, but doesn't seem to mind.
”This a friend of yours?” Bharaz asked, motion at the naked Lizardfolk.
Ruel shakes his head at Bharaz's question. "No, never seen the likes of him before."
He glances over at the felled corpse of the gigantic mantis. He answers the lizardfolk's question. "Yes, still in the Pagoda. Tied up and given over to be mantis chow. How'd you end up pissing off the bugs that bad?"
He wonders briefly if this could be another setup by the Red Mantis, but the timing would be difficult to pull off -- assuming they knew the Pact was going to attack the Pagoda, and they'd rather not just station a whole army here to overwhelm them.
Achutla frowns when no one answers his query about their identity.
He answers the elf, "I attacked this place. I have been at war with the Red Mantiss my whole life, making no headway. I couldn't take it anymore. My attack, well...It failed. Now, please, who are you?"
The tall elf points to himself, then to the others in the Pagoda. "I'm Uruelleth. That's Kilarra; she's Talia; and the dwarf is Bharaz. There's another human running around here, Talivar."
He tilts his head at the lizardfolk. "And your name? I can understand going to war with the bugs, but fighting them all on your own is, well, likely to get you where you wound up."
He frowns. "We should go look for Talivar. Why on Gorum's battlefield would he take off like that?"
"I am Acutla, last of the Greyscaless." Achutla bows his head to the others. "I did not choose this war - it chose me."
Achutla looks down at his naked body. "You didn't happen to find my gear anywhere did you? Big sword, plate armor, magic items? What bringss the five of you here?"