Leonard moves north, standing at a safe distance from the nearest wamp and sending a series of images moving in all directions.
Vincent charges his spear and eats an herb causing his form to alter as well, monstrous physique on himself.
"well at least they weren't hard to find." Seamus begins to sing to inspire his friends and stepping north, throws a snowball at the nearest thing.
Seamus's snowball falls short. The green wamp steps closer to Claude and starts trying to bite and claw at him.
Claude gets clawed twice,the rest of the attacks bouncing off his tough hide. He snaps at the borderless wamp approaching him.
He manages to give it a savage bite.
It tries to bite him.
The blue wamp double moves to next to Claude.
The red wamp steps close to Leonard and starts clawing and biting at Leonard,destroying 4 of his doppelgangers.
The yellow wamp moves up to Leonard tries to bite him.
It snaps at only air.
Vincent steps up to the red wamp and attacks it. He uses his spear on the yellow one.
Vincent bites the red wamp and it tastes absolutely foul, like rotten eggs. He manages to land four claw attacks on, but does not hit anything vital, and it ducks away the sting.
He manages to stab the yellow wamp once, but the second attempt bounces off its leathery hide.
Vincent gets a sudden flash of inspiration and manages to stab the yellow wamp a second time.
continuing his song, Seamus smiles when he sees Vincent tear into the creature, surprised that it was still standing, seeing it duck away, he throws a snowball at it.
Seamus throws a snowball at the red wamp, freezing it into an icicle.
Leonard doesn't bother enhancing his sword, instead swinging out repeatedly with cold steel and dicing the already badly injured wamp.
Leonard manages to slice the wamp into two!
Claude chomps green into two with a single bite, then rips the blue wamp into bits.
The remaining wamp attempts to bite and claw at Claude.
One of the blows is deflected by Howard's green shield, while the rest do not penetrate his thickened hide.
Claude pulverizes the remaining wamp. Searching among the graves that the wamps have been digging up, Vincent and Howard find a platinum ring worth 50 gp, a jade necklace of fireballs (type VI), and a magical silver bracelet. Leonard cuts off a few webbed red feet off the dead wamps.
The party returns to the ghasts reporting the deed has been done and a grateful Kharesto rewards the party with a mantle of spell resistance, a lion’s shield and a sunblade out of the city’s vaults, for saving his people from starvation.
The party then wakes themselves up on the Sellen Starling, finding the sun shining right in their faces, feeling stiff, as well as ravenous and thirsty, as if they hadn't had any food and drink for a while. Looking outside the cabin, they realize it's already noon. They also hear the urgent pounding on their cabin door, and open it to find a worried sailor looking at them. "We came t' deliver grub but no one answered th' door, 'n we thought ye were sleepin' in late. If ye didnât answer this time, weâd prolly 'ave t' ask Captain Skywind fer th' spare keys t' make sure yeâre all right."
Vincent nods after their return, I don't see why not.
Leonard stretches out rather languidly in his chair, satisfied after a night's work. "They were elves, actually. Rather odd, only big group of elves in the city, and they turned out to be cultists." He gazes down at the ornate staircase, it's fifty steps which his hands have now been over countless times. "They had too many beds, it was very confusing. At the time we figured we only got half of them, but..." Leonard's left hand twitches slightly, and he folds them behind his head. "Well, I guess we'll never know." He nods once, looking up at Seamus. "The only surviving prisoner babbled and talked about things that weren't there."
I saw everything, but you know me.
Leonard takes the pan, holding it over the fire rather awkwardly. He adds a little butter, but no olive oil. "We're going to keep it nice and simple," he says to himself, almost as though he's alone.
Leonard takes two plates and fills them each equally with two large potatoes and half a catfish, heading back to the cabin with them. He looks around for Monty, "Monty, I found some buopoths...then I had to go get a hat." He looks at the Voonith, sitting down with his two plates in front of him and pushing one towards Monty. "Just like you said, small trunks, small ears, big bodies." He picks up a potatoe and takes a bite, not bothering with utensils.
Vorq does not manage to identify the bracelet either.
Darja watches from the side in the kitchen. "You might want to add some gawlic to that." She helpfully suggests.
"Ooooh daethoch chi ginio i mi! Mae hynny'n braf ohonoch chi. Rydych chi wedi gweld y bupoths? Arent maen nhw yw'r pethau mwyaf torfol erioed?" Monty answers enthusiastically. Then he blushes, slightly embarrassed. " Rydych chi'n gwybod ... bupoths blas yn hytrach da. Mae eu cig yn brasterog a melys.Gellid ei goginio fel y pysgod yma." Monty points at the catfish fish served.
Ooooh you brought me lunch! That's nice of you. You saw the bupoths? Arent they the cutest things ever?
You know...bupoths taste rather good. Their meat is fatty and sweet. Could be cooked like the fish here.
'Elves? How mysterious!' Listening carefully to the story, Seamus looks from the sword to his friend. "So did you ever learn what or who they were a cult for? And is the sword elvish made." Then looking at the sword again and shuddering, "And has it always talked like that, you know, a little crazy?"
Seamus nodds his head in aggreement with Vincent, "Take as long as you want Howard, I'd be happy if we never go back there, it's creepy. I don't like dreams like that, there too close to nightmares."
Upon awakening, the party feels that they have uncovered even more mysteries of the universe.
Vincent explains what opioids are and their effects, so that Leonard will appreciate the comparison.
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Howard nods to Monty.
"Rwy'n falch o weld eich bod chi'n gweithredu fel eich hen hunan eto!"
He then turns to Seamus.
"Thank-you. It should help to increase Claude's effectiveness. Now that this stage is over, I should be able to divert some time to finishing a few small projects for the rest of you..."
"Cinio yn wyr, ond mae'n teimlo fel cinio. Erioed wedi tatws cyn." Leonard points to the potato which he is unscrupulously eating, "Po-ta-to. Canfum yn edrych yn od eithaf y buopith dwi erioed wedi gweld eliffant ychwaith. Roedd yn llawer mwy ac yn dalach na'r disgwyl, mae popeth bob amser mor fawl a tal..." Leonard pokes his right arm a few times. He is disappointed.
"Lunch indeed, though it feels more like dinner. Ever have a potato? The buopith's were quite odd looking, I'd never seen an elephant either. It was much larger than I expected, everything is always so big and tall..."
[/spoiler]
"No, never found out, though perhaps one day we might." Leonard pulls out Angiliath and lays it across his thighs, "Angiliath. I don't know if you speak elvish, but that's what they called it. Iron of the stars. It's an enigma, but one I think I was at least reasonably close to solving, before...well...before Lowls." Leonard examines the hilt for what must be the thousandth time, "It's rather soft spoken with me. It interjects itself in conversations and asks questions about those around it." He pokes the blade with a finger delicately, "it's...been a bit quieter recently. I'm not used to spending time with the same people for so long, in the old days, it was just us and strangers." He sheathes the sword, stretching out again and relaxing in his chair.
Leonard takes another drink, discovering that the bottle of rum is now empty. "Like you were having a conversation with a person in the floor? I don't...I don't...I don't..." he repeats stupidly, looking at the floor. You don't hold your liquor very well, apparently. "I don't know what that would be like," he finally says anticlimactically. "And anyway, it looks like we're out of rum. Don't worry, though, I know the cook, we can find more." Leonard stands up, keeping one hand on the table, just in case.
” O - yeah rwy'n iawn erbyn hyn. Nid yw Damien yn fath drwg mewn gwirionedd. Yr wyf yn golygu ei fod yn nerfus i ddechrau oherwydd mae gen i raddfeydd yn hytrach na chael croen pinc, sy'n rhyfedd iawn gan fod ganddo greadur ddoniol sy'n edrych fel ei fod wedi'i wneud allan o greigiau yn ei gaban. Rwy'n ceisio dysgu cyffredin gan Leonard ac ef fel y gallaf siarad â gweddill y criw. Rydych chi'n gwybod ... y geiriau ar gyfer ...” Monty tells Howard.
Oh – yeah I’m fine now. Damien isn’t a bad sort really. I mean he was initially nervous because I have scales instead of having a pink skin, which is really strange since he’s got a funny creature that looks like its made out of rocks in his cabin. I’m trying to learn common from Leonard and him so I can talk to the rest of the crew. You know…the words for…
”Food?” Monty voices out in heavily accented common. ” Ac rydw i wedi dysgu sut i wneud hyn!”Monty sticks out a paw and closes the rest of his digits, showing a thumbs up. ” I ddangos bod y bwyd yn dda!”
And I’ve learnt how to do this!
To show the food is good!
” Nope Nid wyf erioed wedi cael tatws o'r blaen.”Monty tries a potato, then enthusiastically gobbles up ALL of Leonard’s potatoes as well as his own. He says after he has done so.” Mae'n dda!”
Nope I’ve never had a potato before.
It's good!
” Ie efallai y byddant yn edrych yn fawr, ond mewn gwirionedd maen nhw'n braidd yn ofnus. Mae popeth yn eu bwyta am ginio.“Monty adds his comments about Buopiths.
Yeah they may look big but actually they’re rather timid. About everything eats them for lunch.
Leonard returns Monty's thumbs up with one of his own, "good job. Keep it up, one day you'll know what I'm saying."
He repeats himself in Aklo, after a moment.
"Yn wir, da newydd dywedodd Gymrawd unwaith, bob amser, eu bod yn iachus. Wholesome. Beth yw eich barn am y psygod?" Leonard grabs a bite of catfish and stuffs it in his mouth. It is highly unusual for him to eat in a way that cannot be described as dainty.
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Howard nods thoughtfully.
"Da, yr wyf yn falch o'i glywed. Rydych chi'n gwybod, os ydych chi'n dysgu Taldane ychydig mwy, efallai y byddant yn fodlon eich cadw chi fel rhwystr i unrhyw greaduriaid afon cas, ac fel pysgotwyr! Mae dynion yn tueddu i ofni dim ond yr hyn nad ydynt yn ei ddeall, felly y gorau maen nhw'n eich adnabod chi, y cryfach yw'r bond a gewch gyda nhw..."
”Poh-Tay-Toe.” Monty dutifully repeats after Leonard. ”Poh –Tay-Toe, Poh-Tay-Toe, Poh-Tay-Toe.” Then he grins and gives a thumbs up version. ”Food.”
” Efallai.”Monty answers noncommittally. ”Rwy'n golygu bod cymaint o gyfleoedd gyrfa o gwmpas. Dywed Damien fod y cwch yn mynd i ddinas croen fawr pinc o'r enw Cassomir. Ac nid wyf erioed wedi gweld dinas ddynol o'r blaen. Mae'n debyg, os byddaf yn tagio gyda phobl eraill, cefais i mewn, dde?”
Maybe.
I mean there are so many career opportunities around. Damien says that the boat is going to a big pink skin city called Cassomir. And I’ve never seen a human city before. I suppose if I tag along with other humans, I’ll be allowed in, right?
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Howard sighs regretfully.
"Yn onest? Mae'n debyg na fydd. Ydych chi'n cofio sut yr oedd y criw yn gweithredu tuag atoch pan ddaethoch chi ar y bwrdd yn gyntaf? Wel, dychmygwch fod hynny'n lluosog â mil, gyda gwarchodwr tref arfog wedi'i gymysgu ynddi. Gall pobl fod yn niweidiol iawn tuag at greaduriaid nad ydynt yn eu deall. Wedi dweud hynny, ar ôl i ni gael eich hethol amdanoch chi, ac ar ôl bod yn agored i chi am ychydig, ac yn argyhoeddedig nad oeddech chi'n ceisio eu bwyta, mae'r criw yn sicr wedi dod i'ch derbyn..."
Vincent chuckles and waves Leonard on, Go finagle some more out of the cook and I'll explain one of the mysteries of life to you, what it's like to talk to someone in the floor.
"Wel mae'r cig yn feddal ac yn fflach. Gellid defnyddio ychydig o flasau ychwanegol eraill arni, er.Fel y saws gwyrdd a oedd ar y pysgod y diwrnod cynt." Monty suggests, but eats Leonard's share, and his own, anyway.
Well the meat is soft and flaky. Could use a few other extra tastes onto it, though. Like the green sauce that was on the fish the day before.
"Pam y byddwn ni'n bwyta croen binc hyd yn oed." Monty looks offended."Maent yn dod o hyd i fwyd mor braf.O dda. Amcana na wn i weld y ddinas croen pinc yna."
Why would we eat pink skins. They come up with such nice food. Oh well. I guess i wont get to see that pink skin city,then.
Seamus smiled as Monty asked about the human city. Nodding in agreement with Howards answer, then smiling wider, ""Mae Howard yn hollol gywir. Wrth gwrs, os ydych chi'n gweithio ar eich sgiliau iaith, mae'n debyg y gallech esgus eich bod yn byped ac yn argyhoeddi pawb yr oeddem yn difyrwyr stryd. Ond beth bynnag yw eich barn chi am fyw mewn cronfa?"
"Nid wyf yn meddwl. Cyn belled nad yw'r gefnffordd yn rhy fach. Rwy'n golygu, os yw'r bwyd ar y cwch hwn yn dda, a allwch chi ddychmygu pa fath o fwyd y gallech ei gael mewn dinas fawr o groen pinc?" Monty answers.
I dont mind. As long as the trunk isnt too small. I mean, if the food on this boat is that good,could you imagine what kind of food you could get in a big city of pink skins?
"No, no need for green sauce. Not today, today we're celebrating the first day in my new life." Leonard takes another large bite of potato, swallowing the last of it quietly. "I used to be the weakest person in any given room, forced to subsist on catfish and potatoes. Then I broke free, and became a wanderer, roaming from place to place, no home, no family. And then...there are hazy memories and old thoughts bouncing around my head. But then I went to sleep for a long time, and now I'm waking up again. I've spent my life leaving people I used to know, but I think I'm going to be done with that now." Leonard takes a deep breath, holds it for a second, and then goes back to eating the last of his fish. "So tell me, what did the sauce taste like?"
"Mysteries of life? What about the mystery of life, eh?" Leonard grunts, swaggering off to the kitchens with his chest puffed out and his left arm on the wall. He finds the kitchens and walks inside, eyes wide open, right hand outstretched...how did Angiliath end up in his hand? Must just be muscle memory. "Oh cheeeff," he calls, to what is most likely a dark and empty room. "Chef? Cook. Cooook, where are you misses cook?"
"Well, I don't see what's wrong with subsisting on catfish and potatoes."Monty sounds puzzled. "I could eat them all day long. I mean pink skins are remarkable creatures to come up with the idea of cooking."
"Being weak is bad. Can't swim fast enough to catch fish. Then you'll probably be small too. Were you the runt of the clutch of eggs?" Monty asks bluntly.
" On the Oukranos River, we ate everything raw. We never knew what we were missing on! Sure, Kaa after he came to Golarion for a while, learnt how to smoke those iridescent fish, but it's nothing compared to what the pink skins have come up with!"
"I mean it's bad to have no friends, but I don't have a family either. Vooniths come out from eggs. Our parents lay us in pit filled with compost then swim off and leave us to find our way to the river. We start off small by eating insects and small fish, then as we grow bigger we start eating bigger fish. My home is my cave."
"The sauce tasted like garlic, onion, capers, parsley, vinegar and olive oil."Monty answers.
Leonard feels himself trip as he stubs his toe against the raised floor. He grabs something that feels like a shelf to the side to keep his balance, unfortunately in the process, his weight causes some containers to fall over, resulting the sounds of thumps and clanking of containers hitting the ground.
He hears the sound of footsteps then feels a light from behind him. "Ahoy, wha' are ye doin' in th' storeroom!"
Leonard points with Angiliath at the pots, "I was cleaning up a terribly in the way mess. I think I tripped over it, actually, wanna help?" Leonard reaches down, trying to hook the handle of a pot with the tip of his sword.
This is not what I was made for.
Leonard shakes his head, "It's okay, we humans are different. I don't think you can understand easily." He finishes his fish. "I'm built for a family. I look at a face, a human face, and I wonder why they don't love me." He taps the table quietly with one hand to fill up the silence that comes with not being able to speak. "Gotta have something to give my life meaning. Otherwise I could just fall off the planet and it wouldn't matter. But that's alright, I got some meaning. Vinegar, eh? Vinegar indeed, I'll have to remember that..." Leonard looks at his uneaten fishskin, pushing his plate away and putting his arms behind his head.
"Ye're makin' a bigger one." The sailor scolds Leonard bluntly. "Why don't ye get out o' thar 'n go back t' yer cabin, unless thar was somethin' ye were lookin' fe?"
"Yeah I think there may be differences between a Voonith and a pink skin. Pink skins talk about things like family, but Vooniths don't have families. They form packs to hunt and stick around together. Maybe your fellow pink skins may understand you better."Monty looks over Leonard like he's some kind of puzzle.
"What is this meaning of life you are talking about? Life has meaning if you are having fun?"
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Howard strokes his chin thoughtfully.
"Mae croen pinc yn weithwyr byw. Mae eu hŷn yn tyfu y tu mewn iddyn nhw nes eu bod yn cyrraedd cyfnod penodol o ddatblygiad, ac yna'n cael eu diddymu oddi wrth y corff i'w datblygu ymhellach. Fodd bynnag, nid ydynt yn annibynnol tan flynyddoedd lawer yn ddiweddarach. Mae hyn yn hyrwyddo teulu (sy'n cael ei ddiffinio fel rhieni a phlant) / bondio grwpiau bach, fel y rhai sy'n derbyn gofal yn gynnar mewn bywyd, yn fwy tebyg i oroesi. O'r hyn yr wyf yn cofio anatomeg amffibiaid, mae Vooniths yn cael eu birthed o fylchau wyau, ac maent yn eithaf hunangynhaliol cyn gynted ag y byddant yn gorchuddio. O ganlyniad, ni fu unrhyw fantais wrth ffurfio bondiau bach.
Os, fel y rhan fwyaf o Vooniths, rydych chi'n canolbwyntio'n bennaf ar ddileu eich prydau nesaf, tactegau pecyn, a strwythur cymdeithasol pecyn, yn gwneud synnwyr perffaith..."
If, like most Vooniths, you are primary focused on bringing down your next meal, pack tactics, and a pack social structure, make perfect sense..."
"Mae croen pinc yn rhyfedd. Pam nad yw croen pinc yn ei wneud fel y mae Vooniths yn gwneud ac yn dodwy wyau? Yna efallai y bydd croen pinc yn gallu gofalu amdanynt eu hunain ar hyn o bryd maen nhw'n dod allan o wyau fel Vooniths." Monty comments.
"O ie, gyda phecyn, gallwch chi wneud hyn!" Monty explains to Howard. "Daliwch lawer mwy o bysgod fel hynny, gan ddal tân yn unig."
Pink skins are strange. Why not pink skin try to do as Vooniths do and lay eggs? Then maybe pink skins can take care of themselves the moment they come out of eggs like Vooniths.
Oh yes, with a pack, you can do this!
Catch many more fish that way then catching fire alone.
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Howard shrugs noncommittally.
"Gallai hynny fod yn wir, ond mae cynhyrchu eu heffaith yn y ffordd y maent yn ei wneud, wedi eu galluogi i fodoli mewn mwy o ddwysedd nag yn ymarferol unrhyw ffurfiau bywyd eraill. Wedi'r cyfan, yr wyf yn amau bod yna leoedd yn y Dreamlands lle gall mwy na chant mil o alwadau fodoli mewn cytgord (cymharol); eto mae gan humanoids ddinasoedd gwych lle mae casgliadau mor fawr yn bosibl..."
"Hmm pecyn mwyaf o Vooniths ..." Monty starts counting his digits on each of his paws."Un, dau, tri ..." Then he squints as if the Maths is giving him a headache, scratches his head, then hazards a guess. "Fifty?"
"Ond pecyn rhy fawr - nid oes digon o fwyd!" Monty protests.
Hmm...biggest pack of Vooniths...
One, two, three...
Fifty?
But too big a pack - there's not enough food!
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Howard shakes his head.
"Byddai hynny'n wir pe bai pawb yn gorfod porthu drostyn nhw eu hunain, ond trwy gydweithio mewn grwpiau mawr, mae arbenigedd yn gallu datblygu - felly gall y cefnwlad helaeth o gwmpas dinasoedd o'r fath gael ei drosglwyddo i gynhyrchu bwyd, gyda phobl yn ffermio mwy o fwyd nag sydd ei angen arnynt, ac anfon y gwarged i'r dinasoedd ... a chaniatáu i'r bobl yn y dinasoedd wneud pethau eraill, megis pethau ymarferol fel gwaith lledr a gwaith metel, a mwy o bethau esoteric fel hanes astudio, neu gynnal ymchwil..."