R.J floats higher into the air beating on his chest, pointing at the writhing mound of snakes, and chattering excitedly.
|
"Drilla, no! Down! Down!"
Niocholu considers how the woman treats the bear.
"R.J. drop that sausage before you become you one!"
And how the man treats the monkey. He ponders quietly, Most curious. All of the animals that Niocholu has encountered were either wild, spies, or… food. These beasts follow commands, unlike wild animals. And the human and vanara both seem to be taking efforts to see these animals do NOT fattened up.
Niochulu eyes the snakes. He quickly rules them out as food, concluding that they must be wild animals or spies—neither of which he is fond of.
Acid or alchemist's fire is better. They'll bite you, but don't worry: they're too little to have venom!"[/b]
“Acid?” The northman pauses for a moment, then says, “Yes! Niocholu have that! Now, where did Niocholu put vial?” The man begins rifling through his pack until he retrieves a vial of brownish liquid. Then he shouts joyously, “Ah! Niochulu has found it! See, Niochulu is useful! Here is the hand with the acid! Would you likink to take?”
Holding the acid in his hand and having limited experience with animals. Nicohulu tries to frighten the animals into finding other things to bite.
|
|
Quasar's confident smile fades as her summoned mass of dirt and rock impacts just wide of the snakes, doing little to deter them. Remembering Janira's words from earlier, Luralyn, Reshu, and Niocholu all draw alchemical items. The barbarian's shout causes one particular snake to turn tail and slither away at top speed, though it seems to have little effect on the swarm as a whole. Fareth, meanwhile takes on a bestial aspect while Drilla has a snack.
|
|
---
Janira takes a step away from the swarms path and shouts directions. "Spread out! And quit shouting at them, Niocholu, it won't work! Does everyone have a splash weapon? If not, use this!" She draws a flask of acid and holds it out for someone to take, then begins an inspiring recitation of Pathfinder lore.
“Let us remember the sacrifice of the fabled Yasmin bint Faroud, favored of the Ten, who gave her life distracting Zythrustianax, draconic scourge of the Society, so dozens of junior agents could survive. Her act of benevolence is the epitome of cooperation within the Society.”
|
|
"Niochulu thought shoutink did work! Snake run go to the away, did it not?" The northman looks a bit confused, but does his best to comply with the instructions of the senior Pathfinder.
As no one else seems interested in taking the acid that he found, Niochulu decides that he will throw it himself at the swarm. As he does so, he shouts, "Niochulu is sorry, bear! Unless you spy, then Niochulu not sorry."
|
Reshu feels by inspired Janira's story and Drilla's bravery "R.J. see how brave and selfless Drilla is? She sacrifices herself that we may live just like the Pathfinder in Miss Janira's tale! You must learn from her fine example."
Bolstered by his newfound courage Reshu strides forward and flings the alchemist's fire at the swarm.
"Your heroism shall not be forgotten brave Drilla!"
R.J. laughs hysterically at Reshu's abysmal combat prowess.
As the tiny snakes swarm all over her, Drilla goes to town!
|
Roaring earth fills Luralyn's ears, almost blocking out Janira's words of encouragement. What is that? He dashes around a tree to get closer to the writhing mass. "We're not gonna sacrifice anyone if I can help it!"
He mutters a few lilting syllables, then tosses the glimmering flask into the serpents.
|
|
Quasar channels her frustration at her last shot into a bigger, louder ball of earth which unfortunately has the same result. Fareth and Drilla coordinate their attacks against the writhing mass of serpents, but neither is able to make any real progress. Reshu, trying not to hit Drilla, doesn't put quite enough oomph on his throw, the flask falling between himself and the swarm and singeing his feet . Niocholu, however, is right on target. Inspired by Janira's tales of heroics, his acid seems to do a little more damage than he expects , though it does splash onto Drilla. Luralyn cocks his arm back to throw as well, but holds when he sees the scattered serpents fleeing after Niocholu's attack!
|
|
Luralyn whoops in triumph when the swarm disperses. "Good throw, Nicholu!"
He looks at the furrows opened by Quasar's blasts, then turns to the woman. "Alright, I hope this isn't prying, but... How do you do that!? That's not like any magic I've ever seen." He jiggles a finger in one tall ear. "Leaves quite the impression!"
----
"I've spent my fair share of time traveling cross-country, but it's been a while since I've seen actual trails this poorly maintained..."
|
|
The battle with the snakes over, you set off again. As you continue to travel through the wilderness, Janira becomes more and more concerned as you find trails blocked by fallen objects, shortcuts overgrown, and other minor delays that cost you time. "Oh, we better hurry if we want to make it there in time for the full moon!"
|
|
Luralyn whoops in triumph when the swarm disperses. "Good throw, Nicholu!"
"Yes!" Niochulu responds. "Niocholu not likink gettink hurt. Acid good scare if animals are of wild. Also, good warnink if they are of the spies."
Once the party sets off toward the caves, Niochulu does his best to keep up with them.
Though clearly not in his element, the man has little difficulty.
|
|
| 1 person marked this as a favorite. |
Quasar frowns as another pile of rocks goes wide. "I swear I usually land those right on target. My balance must still be off from drinking that elixir."
He looks at the furrows opened by Quasar's blasts, then turns to the woman. "Alright, I hope this isn't prying, but... How do you do that!? That's not like any magic I've ever seen." He jiggles a finger in one tall ear. "Leaves quite the impression!"
"Yeah.. I've noticed gifts like mine don't seem as common out here as they are back in Vudra. Back there it's just 'this child has a strong connection to the earth' where here it's 'ooh, where'd you learn that spell?'" She shrugs.
"For some reason, I was expecting a clearer trail to follow..."
|
|
Reshu shivers, and giggles as the healing magic flows through him. {b] "Many thanks for soothing that pain in my toes Miss Janira."[/b] He then turns to Niocholu. "Excellent aim friend Niocholu! If the slithery fiends were spies their masters will think twice before harassing you I should think!"
Back on the road Reshu tries to help navigate the party.
|
Fareth fusses over Drilla. "Did the snakes get you? Let me see your paws. No, don't eat the ones covered in acid; that's bad for you."
Fareth turns to the group and says, "Well, I guess you all know now. I'm not exactly a regular human. But it does have its advantages."
She turns away so her face morphs privately, and then turns back with the sharp teeth gone, but her nose more elongated. She sniffs the air experimentally.
"Come, Drilla. Let's find our way."
|
|
Though this land may be foreign to him, Niocholu has a sense for the forest, easily finding the best paths and making up for lost time. After several more hours of hiking, just as day is turning into dusk, the dense forest opens to a wide clearing as you approach the base of a sheer cliff. Thick vines cover the surface of the cliff stretching 30 feet overhead.
|
|
“A minotaur! There’s little chance we can stand against it. Take this bag,” she continues, pulling off her backpack, “and head deeper into the caves. Finish your mission. I’ll lead it away from the caves, lose it in the forest, and join you as soon as I can. Now go! GO!” She heaves her backpack into the cave, casts a spell, and darts off toward the minotaur before turning to lure it away.
|
|
Fareth turns to the group and says, "Well, I guess you all know now. I'm not exactly a regular human. But it does have its advantages."
"There much Niochulu have yet to learn, but Niochulu already know that there no such think as 'regular human'--such not be the existink." The northman responds with a smile. Nevertheless, the man seems to somewhat keep his distance from the skinwalker as the party proceeds toward the caves.
--
“A minotaur! There’s little chance we can stand against it. Take this bag,” she continues, pulling off her backpack, “and head deeper into the caves. Finish your mission. I’ll lead it away from the caves, lose it in the forest, and join you as soon as I can. Now go! GO!” She heaves her backpack into the cave, casts a spell, and darts off toward the minotaur before turning to lure it away.
Niochulu looks at the scene unfolding before him. He is torn. He does not wish to see the "Friendly One" meet an early demise, but he also understands that he is to follow the orders of a more experienced agent.
"Would you not do more better against horned beast with bringink to with you the useful thinks in backpack?" he calls out to the halfling as she runs off.
|
|
| 1 person marked this as a favorite. |
"Let Ragdya guide you Miss Janira, and you shall lead that monstrosity on a merry chase!" Shouts Reshu as Janira sprints away from the group.
Reshu then turns, gestures for R.J. to follow, and enters the cave. "Come R.J. we must retrieve Miss Janira's bag before some opportunistic fish person absconds with it!"
|
|
"Back there it's just 'this child has a strong connection to the earth' where here it's 'ooh, where'd you learn that spell?'"
Luralyn's shoulders slump. "Huh, I hadn't thought of that. I bet it gets old."
Sweat and fatigue slowly erode his embarrassment as he follows Fareth's lead and helps Niocholu clear the trail.----
"Wait!" Luralyn cries in alarm, reaching a hand towards Janira. He looks over his shoulder at the others, already following orders and entering the cleft. "Well, f%*+."
He spins on one heel and rushes after them, robe flapping around his calves.
|
|
As you retreat into the caves you see the Minotaur turn and chase Janira, crashing its way through the dense underbrush. Inside the mouth of the cave, a calm quiet returns as the sounds of the minotaur fade into the distance. Inside Janira’s backpack, you find the following items neatly labeled :
----------
Water dripping from stalactites and the distant rushing of underground streams creates an eerie backdrop as you explore. The caves’ walls are patterned with blue-green luminescent
fungi that provide dim light. Petroglyphs—most depicting marine animals or spiral shapes—periodically decorate the tunnels’ walls, becoming increasingly frequent as you progress deeper into the cave. The rough surface of the carvings provides a natural platform for the fungi, causing it to grow thicker and making the carvings glow slightly brighter than their surroundings.
The narrow tunnel twists and turns for several hundred feet before slowly opening to a wider passage. A large hole spans the entire width of the path and stretches ten feet ahead. At the bottom of the twenty-foot-deep pit lies a small bundle of cloth.
|
|
As they make their way through the narrow tunnels, Quasar smiles. "Rather relaxing down here, don't you all agree?"
Quasar walks up to the edge of the pit and has a look around.
Seeing the obvious bundle at the bottom, and the need to get across, she adds. "I don't suppose anyone brought any rope? Those walls look a bit slick to want to go down for it barehanded. Plus I'm not sure all of you can make this jump..."
Rather impulsively, assuming the others leave her enough room for the running start (and that she sees no obvious traps), she'll then try to casually leap to the far side.
|
|
Seeing Quasar struggling to carry her equipment, Niochulu offers, "Please be lettink Niochulu do the carryink of things of heavy for you." Taking hold of the woman's gear, Niochulu spots the rations. "Niochulu happy to be eatink that for you if you thinkink it help with the carryink."
As they make their way through the narrow tunnels, Quasar smiles. [b]"Rather relaxing down here, don't you all agree?"
"Niochulu not believe that Niocholu be to the agreeink with you. Or else, 'relaxink' not mean what Niochulu think it mean."
Seeing the obvious bundle at the bottom, and the need to get across, she adds. "I don't suppose anyone brought any rope? Those walls look a bit slick to want to go down for it barehanded. Plus I'm not sure all of you can make this jump..."
In response to the question, the northman lays down his pack and removes a 50-foot line of hemp rope. "Niochulu havink the rope for which you do the askink!"
|
|
"Not you need to go worryink. Niocholu know how to deal with hole." He looks for a place to tie off end, ideally about five feet from the edge of the pit. He then tries to toss the other end of the rope across the pit. "Here!" he shouts to Quasar. "Do catchink of rope and tie off as Niochulu do!"
Using the slack from the rope, carefully climbs down into the pit.
He examines the cloth at the base of the pit.
|
|
After rummaging through Janira's pack, Reshu rearks " Ooh! Miss Janira brought many useful items." His brow furrows as he considers the items. "I believe you were correct friend Niocholu. Many of these items may have aided Miss Janira. Though I suppose shedding the weight of them could also aid her if her goal is to outrun the beastie."
Quasar Bhatt wrote:
As they make their way through the narrow tunnels, Quasar smiles. "Rather relaxing down here, don't you all agree?"
"Niochulu not believe that Niocholu be to the agreeink with you. Or else, 'relaxink' not mean what Niochulu think it mean."
After sifting through the bag Reshu stands, and examines the interior of the cave. Well I suppose its relaxing... in that we're not being chased by a minotaur. I also prefer the open air to this damp hole in the ground though."
Reshu then scampers across to the other side of the pit being careful to avoid overly slick areas of the stone.
R.J. floats across the pit laughing at his earthbound friend Reshu.
|
|
"It's hard to feel relaxed when Janira's out there running from that thing..."
Luralyn leans in to examine the petroglyphs. "Still, there is something soothing about this glowing stuff plus that faraway water. Like one of those Taldan high society "symphonic experiences" folks used to talk abut." He rubs a finger along the fungus, hoping something of the phosphorescence will ru off. "Heh, imagine one of those aristocrats with their fancy clothes trying to do this."
When they reach the pit, he helps Nicoholu tie and toss the rope, then backs up several feet. "I bet I can make it!" He takes sprints towards the edge, plants a foot on the rock lip, then launches himself across the gap. He sails through the air, right leg stretched forward.
For a second, it even looks like he'll make it.
"Uh o—oof!"
He collides with the far edge. The impact knocks the wind out of him, and he can't even muster the wherewithal to scrabble for a hold.
He falls to the bottom of the pit and impacts with a sickening thump. From above, it looks like someone dropped a handful of straw on a puddle of spilled milk. Not that milk usually groans.
|
|
Seeing Quasar struggling to carry her equipment, Niochulu offers, "Please be lettink Niochulu do the carryink of things of heavy for you." Taking hold of the woman's gear, Niochulu spots the rations. "Niochulu happy to be eatink that for you if you thinkink it help with the carryink."
"I think I'll manage, thanks."
In response to the question, the northman lays down his pack and removes a 50-foot line of hemp rope. "Niochulu havink the rope for which you do the askink!"
Quasar does her best to secure her end of the rope, to something so that anyone else not up for a running jump can simply climb down and back up, wincing in sympathy as Luralyn tries for it anyway and fails.
|
|
Fareth turns away again, and you hear strange muffled noises of her transformations. As she turns back, her hands and feet have transformed into large paws rivaling Drilla's.
Fareth easily climbs down the rope, calling to Drilla. "Come on, girl! You can do it! It's like climbing down a tree!"
Drilla awkwardly starts down the rope.
At the bottom, Fareth helps Luralyn up.
"Need some help? she asks awkwardly, with a bear-like mouth.
|
|
Luralyn clasps Fareth's outstretched hand and lets her pull him to his feet. He wobbles a bit and leans over, hands on his thighs to steady himself. "Yes," he wheezes, "please."
He hisses at the wand's touch, but the magic seems to clear his head and soothe his aches. "Alright. Alright." He nods at Fareth. "Thanks! Let's hope that doesn't happen again."
"You said this was an artificial pit?" he asks, glancing about the bottom. "I guess the gilmen weren't keen on visitors after Janira's last visit. That doesn't seem very auspicious for us."
He steps back over to the rope and works the lingering stiffness from his limbs. If I can't handle a horizontal leap, no way I'm trying it vertical. He carefully climbs the rope, pulls himself over the pit's edge, and greets Quasar with a half-smile.
|
|
He collides with the far edge. The impact knocks the wind out of him, and he can't even muster the wherewithal to scrabble for a hold.
As the half-elf impacts with the dirt, Niochulu lets out a series of hardy laughs. "Ha! Ha! Good funnyink, Damp One!" the northman bellows.
He falls to the bottom of the pit and impacts with a sickening thump.
The broad man continues laughing until he notices that Fareth has entered the pit and is offering a healing wand. The jovial demeanor of the northman suddenly vanishes and his face begins to take on a red hue similar to that of his beard. "Oh," Niochulu mutters, "Then you were not meanink to do that." he says almost apologetically.
In an effort to force the awkward moment to pass, Niochulu holds his arms out wide. "Welcome to pit!" he shouts, "There not much to see here, but it does make for the cozy, yes?"
Pointing to the end of the rope secured by Quasar, the larger man says, "After you, Falling One." then stops himself and ponders aloud (if, perhaps, somewhat anachronistically), "Too soon?"