Simon lands in the glade, having mixed emotions that his spells had failed to down the bird woman. On the one hand she was alive and killing anything always left him with a bad feeling. On the other, being alive was probably not a good thing for her with the rest if the group as they were. If his magic had just been a little more powerful, she wouldn't be put through what she was likely to be.
He keeps his unpopular opinions to himself as he tosses a hand full of leaves over the downed creature's bodys, not so much a funeral as a rededication of their bodies to nature, hoping they would be given reprieve in the next life if their loss was to give new life to nature.
** spoiler omitted **
Xanya, determined to not let anything escape alive, rides down the fleeing foe and stabs in the back as Cryxial rips and shreds it.
Quassine looks at Simon, "Hey Simon, bring the harpy over here to our pyre. We are burning everything we can. Although, we will probably have to bury the Fire Giant and Hellhounds since I don't think they will burn even in death."
The harpy is still alive, just unconscious. I mean, sure you can throw it on the pyre....
Goliath finishes cleaning up. Once done the gear is all in one pile as the bodies are on the pyre. He bounds and hogties the harpy before awakening it with healing.
[ooc]This is for all though I don't think anyone is hurt.
When it's eyes open he grabs the ropes and pulls it up from the ground and holds it aloft to meet his gaze.
"You understand me creature?" He ask both in common and new common as well as giant.
Xanya, you know pretty much that the orcs were regular old run of the mill orcs, with nothing interesting about them. You know that orcs are brutish and strong but don't have any particular special abilities. The other two humanoids look like large orcs, with maybe a touch of ogre? You aren't sure, they seem to be shamanistic of some sort as you rifle through their belongings. They were casters it appears.
You know that normal harpies can talk, and even sing, in fact that is traditionally one of their special powers to be able to charm potential victims. None of these sang, and you note that the ones you have here, dead and alive, have very dark almost metallic feathers. You run your finger over their wing feathers, and indeed they are very hard and at the tips sharp. All of these harpies had well made composite longbows and a quiver of arrows.
You are having a hard time recalling information about fire giants but you have encountered them before. Strong, can throw fire boulders, immune to fire.
Hellhounds you recall can breathe fire, and are from the outer planes, often acting as scouts. They cannot speak but can understand the infernal tongue.
The fire giant, who never had a chance to don his armor, has that and a giant sword, he also has a large sack with gear as do most of the humanoids here. Food, bedding, camp supplies. The giant has a large wooden box in his satchel. The orcs have falchions and crude armor. The harpies had their masterwork composite longbows and 80 arrows apiece. The larger orc like things had hide armor and a variety of shamanistic type ornaments and spell components.
Two other hellhounds bled out by the time you used the channeling but the other two would be stable if you chose to include them.
The harpy is awakened by the channeling and once resuming consciousness squirms against her bonds but seeing it futile she resigns to her fate.
When using new Common, the harpy nods at Goliath. "Yes." she responds in a raspy sort of voice. (Like an old lady who has smoked her whole life.)
Quassine and Simon burn or bury the dead.
Simon you feel a strange presence near you.
"Good. Tell me of the group you follow. Why do you follow them?"
Before Goliath awakens the Hell Hounds, "Goliath, just in case, you may want to muzzle the Hell Hounds unless you are confident you can twist out of their breath or don't mind getting singed?"
The harpy replies smiling, "We were to track and kill them."
@ Q and the others.
"The dogs are not my concern. Drag them away do what you will with them."
Goliath waits for the dogs to be dragged off or drags the harpy over to where the dogs won't benefit of his healing.
"On who's orders? How did you know of them? If you can tell us of the main army we can protect you and promise safety."
"Mimfor over there was giving the orders. (she jerks her head in the direction of the dead giant). He was given his orders remotely with magic. The rest of the army is to the north, and they will come soon to crush the dwarves. So they say."[b] She shrugs and smiles in what she perhaps imagines to be a pleasant smile, but her odor and the stench of rotten flesh on her breath undo any modicum of charm she may have. [b]"I will happily take your protection."
"Orders given with magic? Does he have a device of sorts or did he just hear the orders in his head and relay them? You say they will come soon? When will this be? What can you tell us of their plans?"
Goliath sits her down trying to make sure she is as comfortable as can be given the situation.
"Would you like some water?"
Simon looks over his shoulder, trying to place the feeling of being followed he's had for a while now, really hoping it was just the atomies.
He takes a careful look, trying to place anything out of the ordinary.
Perception
Xanya responds to Quassine much more calmly once she's back. Her voice carries dejaction rather than fury this time. "We offered quarter, repeatedly. Both me and Goliath. You could at least have struck it down or tripped it up when it tried to flee. As already mentioned hellhounds are evil, unless something serious is done to change that, it'll continue to do evil deeds if let lose. Also this is war, not your grandmother's lollygagging. We need to defeat, subdue or kill our enemies, not let them travel back to their masters with all the details of our tactics and who we are."
Xanya helps with the bodies when they return to camp. She separates the wounded hellhounds out of the way before Goliath channels.
In reponse to Goliath's question she answers. "Yeah, they can talk, though they can also sing to captive opponents. I think it should be safe as long as we keep her bound though. They didn't use that during the fight, maybe these are different?"
----
Xanya whispers a short prayer to Desna before she walks over to the prisoner and runs her hands over her feathers. "Nice feathers, they look like they would be helpful for combat. The harpies I've heard about have never had such things. How come you all have?"
She pauses, letting the harpy respond, also letting the harpy drink if she so desires. "I was once like you, my greatest desire was for the next battle, to defeat my enemies and tear them to bits. However Goodwin changed that. As he did for us all. There is a better way to live life, to be free and do good deeds. You too can have that life if only you try hard enough. You don't have to want it right away, you only have to listen and try, then understanding will come to you in time."
She looks around to her group and says in old common. "We don't have very bad time at the moment. We got time to get to know her before we question her. Maybe we'll even manage to turn her to our side."
"Orders given with magic? Does he have a device of sorts or did he just hear the orders in his head and relay them? You say they will come soon? When will this be? What can you tell us of their plans?"
Goliath sits her down trying to make sure she is as comfortable as can be given the situation.
"Would you like some water?"
"Yes, magic. I don't know when they will come. I don't know what day it is. They will sweep through the dwarf lands and kill them all and take back their hammer thing. Yes, water, also I am wounded." she notes the small stabby wounds inflicted by Kiki.
Simon looks over his shoulder, trying to place the feeling of being followed he's had for a while now, really hoping it was just the atomies.
He takes a careful look, trying to place anything out of the ordinary.
Perception 1d20+13
Simon, you don't see or hear anything when you look. You do get a vibe that you are not alone though.
Xanya whispers a short prayer to Desna before she walks over to the prisoner and runs her hands over her feathers. "Nice feathers, they look like they would be helpful for combat. The harpies I've heard about have never had such things. How come you all have?"
She pauses, letting the harpy respond, also letting the harpy drink if she so desires. "I was once like you, my greatest desire was for the next battle, to defeat my enemies and tear them to bits. However Goodwin changed that. As he did for us all. There is a better way to live life, to be free and do good deeds. You too can have that life if only you try hard enough. You don't have to want it right away, you only have to listen and try, then understanding will come to you in time."
"We are different. We do not sing, all the legends talk of the songs, but against many heroes, they are no good. We have been trained for battle."
"Who is Goodwin, you are being friendly, are you not concerned for your weakness?"
Goliath clutches the symbol of Ragathiel hanging at his neck and channels energy again. Then pulls his waterskin and allows the harpy to drink.
"What weakness do you speak of? Goodwin was our teacher. You can tell we are made up of what most would call monsters. His teachings as Xanya said are of doing good. You are not to be blamed here. We are sorry so many had to be slain, but we are helping the dwarves and surrender was offered. I don't know what the giants have promised but living by our teachings provides freedom and we protect each other much like a clan or tribe would."
Quassine looks at Goliath and the Harpy, "I believe brother she is probably referring to our or what sister would say is my weakness of granting mercy?" At which time, Quassine casts Prestidigitation on the harpy which definitely includes her mouth.
She inclines her head gratefully at the small amount of healing. While her wounds are still fairly rough, the cover over a bit more. She grabs the waterskin and guzzles greedily from it, water splashing down her front, turning into a smear of blood and dirt and mud. At least the stories about harpies as filthy creatures seem to be true. Gasping as she guzzles the water, "The weakness of kindness. Our kind does not treat others so. We kill them. Though I am glad to be alive, I cannot understand why you would not slay me. Monsters are what the humans and other races call us. If you embrace that name, why don't you embrace the mantle? " She looks around at the dead. "They were unprepared or unlucky. Some trust in fate, some in luck, some in skill. All three of those failed for them." She waves her filthy clawed hand in a vague gesture at the funeral pyre, or at the line of unconscious hellhounds. "What will you do now? General Rambuchus cannot be stopped. Your defeat of our group only causes a minor delay." she shrugs and picks at her wounds, partly scabbed over now from the healing.
You had always thought harpies to be rather crude, violent and dim witted. Perhaps these specially trained ones are somewhat smarter. She also seems to have a wisdom or insight in her. You look at her dark eyes as she takes everything in.
Goliath as you question her, you can sense she is afraid, but given your discussion so far, she probably feels as though you aren't going to lop her head off immediately, so she is probably just wary.
Quassine smiles, "See brother, she is referring to our kindness as being a weakness." Quassine looks to the harpy, "Everyone has a weakness Harpy, even yourself hence the reason why your are tied up and being spoken to by us. Now that is out of the way, I am curious about this General Rambuchus? So why can we not defeat him?"
"Be at rest harpy for as long as you talk with me the more civil I will remain. You say Rambuchus can't be stopped only because in your eyes you have seen none more powerful. Where you say my kindness is a weakness I argue it is a strength. For my kindness I have allies I call brothers and sisters. We would die for one another if it came to that. You have lived in fear. Even now you are afraid. Fear of not knowing what we will do or even worse the fear of if we free you. Will you return tell Rumbuchus of us and your failure here. Will he be so forgiving? Or fear of how you move on from this. I would offer you this. More kindness. You have seen our prowess and strength. Join with us. Learn from us. Not all follow knightly teachings as I. You will share in our community and be rewarded for your service. Not only in power and wealth but in community and family. You will not serve out of fear but out of love. The road to redemption is not easy but you will not walk it alone. Even now our groups have started to work and deal with the ones that call us monsters. Would you not like vengeance on Rumbuchus? Make him feel the fear you lived under. Now you seem clever and may think this a chance to align then betray us. I welcome you to try, but know I am the hand of vengeance. Ragathiel bolsters me with righteous fury and wrath. Do this and you will no longer have my kindness or love."
Goliath takes a moment to heal her wounds yet again.
"Please take the night to think about it. We will keep your wings and feet bound. If you seek only your freedom then ask now and we will discuss. Tell me though are there any other groups in search of the ones you were following? Also do you know of the staff that some of the groups carry. Your leader does not have one but one of the other groups we defeated did. We know they are to be used in the siege, but do you know what they do?"
The harpy seems to consider all that Quassine and Goliath say. There is probably some eloquence lost in translation as your Common may not be completely fluent, and hers is certainly not that fluent either. The basic idea is communicated however.
She narrows her eyes as Goliath speaks. "Why don't you use your might to take what you wish? As the wolf takes the deer, and the deer eats the grass, the strong take from the weak. Is it not the way of things?"
[b]"There are certainly others who will seek out your friends. They possess one of the scepters, and it will be taken back.
"What makes you think I don't take what I want. Even now I take information from you because you are afraid. This is weakness. To use ones might to gain out of fear. We have captured two of the scepters now and if our brothers and sisters have one that is three. It seems we have taken much from this Rumbuchus. I use my might to protect and bring the weak together. This makes them stronger as a whole. This giant Rumbuchus will see many fall as he has no community and rules with fear. Others will turn just as you are. Please tell us of the scepters? Surely the giant spoke of what they would do if set into place."
"I know nothing of the scepters, other than they are magical tools used by the giants for their plan. I am sure they told us little regarding their use in case we were captured and questioned such as this." She stretches a bit, and her wounds, healed by Goliath are in much better shape. "Why do you care about the fight between the giants and the dwarves? Do you gain from it? We were bred for the fight and serve their strength. Do you think you are stronger than the giants? You are only a small band, powerful in an ambush, but I cannot imagine Rambuchus will be so easily defeated. They say dwarves are slow, unyielding in thought and spirit. Perhaps that will be their downfall." she seems to be musing at random. "How can you aid them so far away? Do you have powerful magic? How can you even stop your friends from losing the scepter as another group hunts them even now. More will come for this one." She stretches her long bound semi-feathered legs as one, dragging vicious dagger like talons through the dirt as her matted filthy hair hangs limply about her. "You speak of my freedom, why? You would free me?"
Quassine opens the box and indeed, in the long thin box is a scepter, much like the first one the group encountered and turned over to Loremaster Cronin.
"If freedom is what you wish then yes. I can not make you follow us, nor wish too. I would hope you would choose too. Another group hunts them even now?" Goliath stands and calls out to the others.
"Our brothers and sisters are not out of danger. The harpy says another group hunts them even now." He then looks to the Harpy.
"Forgive me. What is your name. I am called Goliath. You may keep it if you wish. I will simply call you harpy until a name is given. Was your leader in contact with the other group that hunts? How close are they?"
Then back to the others
"We should rest. There is noting we can do to help them tonight. The best we can do is continue to follow in the morning. So harpy will you stay with us? Join us and become one of us? Or will you leave? Either way you have your freedom, but only one choice gains a family."
"Yes, freedom is given to you Harpy, you can choose to do what you want with it." Quassine states as he secures the Scepter with Goliath. "I am Quassine and this is Xanya, Simon, and Kiki." Quassine turns to Goliath, "I agree, we can not do anything for our brothers and sisters tonight. We should definitely rest!"
Quassine continues to search and will have Goliath free the harpy when he is ready.
"I do wish my freedom. Naturally another group hunts them, and so too will one soon hunt you."
She ponders a while as Goliath gives her his name. "I will keep that private...for now..." She smiles a toothy grin, which could probably be a pleasant smile if her teeth were not blackened and ill-cared for. "Names have power, and I still do not know you people."
"They were in direct communication with each other. We were pursuing the other group and were closing before they increased their speed and travel time to a rate that we could not maintain. The other group will meet them and crush them most likely, unless they are as powerful as you, then I do not know. You ambushed us, so perhaps without one, things would have gone differently."
Goliath will wait a moment making sure no one else has any questions for the harpy.
"Perhaps." Goliath unties the ropes binding the harpy's wings and feet.
"Go if you will or stay. Know this. If you choose to go back and we meet again on the field you will not be extended the same kindness you received this day.
After he sees about resting and praying over his blade.
The harpy wanders the camp but does not make efforts to fly away or flee. She watches Goliath and the others, with a mix of curiosity, scorn or bemusement, depending on what they are doing. At first she just sits in the dirt, and then takes flight hovering slowly up into the tree, where she watches from among the branches. At one point she calls down, "Why do you waste so much meat?" pointing to the funeral pyre of the dead. She also continues to be disgusting with a lack of any manners or graces, even relieving herself from the tree branch at one point to the ground below.
Quassine looks around, "You all want to rest and make camp here?"
Quassine looks over the pyre, "We do not eat that meat and we did not expect you to be company. Go over and see if anything is salvageable."
Xanya had been busy hauling the dead and looking through their gear. "You say the other group will meet up with our comrades. Do you know when this will happen? How many other groups are there coming? How many scepters? You say you know of at least two, is that the extent of your knowledge? Are there more than ten? More than twenty? What's the plan beside these advanced groups? Are there troops held in reserve waiting for something?"
When the harpy is about to fly up the tree Xanya holds her lance out in front of it, stopping it. "While freedom is extremely important, so is avoiding evil. What the giants are planning is definitely evil. Can you swear that you will not join up with them again? Only then can I in good conscience let you go free."
Quassine looks over the pyre, "We do not eat that meat and we did not expect you to be company. Go over and see if anything is salvageable."
"we had no use for them and they start to atrackt scavangers if you let them lay around, but if you want any of it, help your self" adds Kiki and bites into a grashopper like insect she caught.
The harpy, at Kiki and Quassine's offer pulls part of an orcish arm from the fire with a long stick and starts to munch on it.
See saunters back over to where Xanya asks her some questions.
"I don't know when they were to attack them. Your friends were moving fast, and I don't have the information other than we were giving chase from behind. The other group was called to intercept them, when we lost them."
"I don't know how many groups or scepters. I think not that many. No one ever told me, its information for the commanders. Our plan was to deploy the scepters close to the fort. The scepters are some magical device to allow the leaders to attack the fort. I don't have details."
"Troops in reserve? You mean the entire army?" She laughs incredulously at Xanya, cackling unpleasantly. "Oh dear girl, the army masses now and will sweep over the tiny fort like a wave of locusts." (ironically one of the bugs Kiki just munched on).
The harpy tears another piece of meat from the arm, chewing it rudely with her mouth open. "I don't feel bad for the dwarves or for you. You are being kind to me though. It is a strange situation, and I understand this is war, but you allow me to live. " As she flaps her wings to head for the tree and Xanya blocks her with her lance, her eyes flash angrily, but as Xanya explains and forces a promise not to rejoin the giants, she acquiesces, "Of course I promise. It is empty though is it not? If the giants come and destroy you, it will be easy to rejoin and the promise means nothing. If the giants somehow lose," she snorts down at the short derro "Why would I want to be on the losing team? Perhaps your group can offer me power and wealth."
Quassine nods, "Besides what she just said sister, how are we going to monitor if she joins back up with the giants or not? She already knows that we will not show her quarter next time if we have to fight her. In addition, forcing a pledge does not sound like father. At least, he did not give me an ultimatum after I recovered. I think you are flashing back to your racial upbringing Sister and need to let the adrenaline calm down? I say let her be unless she does something rash like attack us, our allies, our brothers, our sisters, or tries to take the scepter at which time brother will rearrange her body."
Xanya is not satisfied with the answers, but she still accepts them. She looks over to Quassine with a nod. "Very well" Having a creature like this talk to them is an opportunity she'll let go to waste though, eagerly she launches into a barrage of questions. "You say you don't know too much about the current plans of the war, but you must know something regardless. As long as we live, we learn. You can't just have popped into existence right before you marched here, right? So, what did you do before coming here? How did you end up with the giants? What can you tell me of this world and where you came from? How is your society organized? Do you have information on the rest of this continent, near and far? Your people must have stories. Have you heard of someone called Kao Lor?"
"My kind is raised to fight in battle. We are trained from hatchling in archery and combat tactics. Other races live out their lives doing as they please, but the battle angel harpies are bred for war. There is no schooling, we do not read, we do not sing, we live only to kill. Deep in the mountains, our aeries exist, and the cloaked masters come for us at an early age, and our harsh brutal regimen begins. We are simply one arm of the giants' plan. They have been preparing a long time it would seem." She chuckles at Xanya's question about society. "There is no society for us. Harpies naturally fight the yoke of discipline and taskmasters, but for us there is little choice. Sure we could flee, fly away, but those that do are tracked, magically and recaptured and slaughtered as an example to the others."
"I have not traveled from these ranged and the mountains of the black ice to the north. I know nothing of a Kao Lor."
"What does your group seek, why are you here? How do you form a band such as this?" It occurs to Xanya she probably means such a mix of races, but it isn't that different really than the mix of humanoids and monsters that you just fought, and perhaps it is only strange to the harpy because of what she may been learned or been told about the outside races.
"We learn little of the outside lands, all we know is that the humans and dwarves and elves and others drive everyone back to the fringe, taking all the best for themselves, and they are shocked when others fight for themselves." Given what she has revealed about her upbringing, it is likely there is a heavy amount of propaganda and brainwashing. With no education or exposure to the outside world, it is easy to see how anyone could have a tainted view of others.
Quassine looks to the group, "So are we setting up camp here to recover and meditate? Then he turns to the Harpy, "Wars come to be when both sides or one side does not want to compromise. My monster-blood kin, the Illithids, would run raids on surface dwellers so they could capture anyone to expand their numbers. If anyone got in the way, they will either apprehend them or kill them if they were not of value such as children, women, and the old. I am sure if the Illithids and my surface dweller blood kin came to an agreement to only take the banished, which is a compromise, the eventual war between the two would not have occurred which came at a terrible time for my Illithid clan who had just been brutally defeated by the Drow or Dark Elves which was shortly after Father accepted me into his, our family. In your case harpy, if you would only feed on Cliffort's banished or heinous criminals, I am sure the Thain would overlook your presence near Cliffort. When you start to eat their innocent, this is when things do not go well for you. The key to the universe is balance and when things are out of balance, events go terribly wrong for one side or both."
The harpy considers Quassine. "To be honest, I have never eaten a person from Cliffort, nor have I been anywhere near it. How many brains have you eaten?"
"Agreements like that work, it has for my blood kin since times long before the first harpy took flight. They only attack those, that enter their teritory univited, most creatures, sentinent or not, that lived in the same area held it the same way. "