The young white tiger has enjoyed his excursion into the jungle. His bright blue eyes scanning everything in turn as his ears turn to note the sounds of small animals scurrying through the underbrush. Finally he hears or smells something worth his time. His tail swishes about and he hunkers down, getting ready to pounce.
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As Uesugi, Luurg and Count Falroun creeps towards the river, Thirsty decides to do the same. He spots another crocodile sunbathing by the side of the river, and charges straight at it. Unfortunately, without anything disguising its scent, the crocodile spots the charging tiger and slithers rapidly back into the river. Thirsty stands by the riverbank, grunting in frustration, recalling how the previous day, the leopard he surprised managed to similarly escape after narrowly dodging a very powerful swipe from his paws. He slowly paces back to Selima.
Once the party has concluded its hunt, you return to the main trail to join the Baron and his entourage, continuing the journey, winding through the forest.
The sun is high overhead, when suddenly, the eagle-eyed Count Falroun raises his voice in alarm, pointing to the left of the trail, "Watch out! Snakes!" The Baron glances over and see the two tiny creatures . "Shh! They're too small to be off great danger, but they might alarm the elephant. Stay silent and keep moving."
He had only just finished speaking though when a giant snake bursts forth from the undergrowth to the right. She sees the whole entourage blocking her path to her precious babies and hisses in anger, ready to strike. The porters screams in alarm and shock. A number of them flee into the cover of the jungle while some of the braver ones start shouting and waving whatever they carry in their hands to scare away the snake. One porter, however, who is standing directly in front of the snake is frozen in terror, and the snake in turns, looks ready to strike him in anger!
Alarmed by the commotion, the two tiny snakes rise and strikes in anger at the old elephant, managing to pierce its thick hide. This stirs the elephant from its semi-slumbering pace and it panics! It bellows loudly, flailing it long trunk, and begins stamping about wildly, threatening to shake the howdah off its back. The mahout, who was similarly dozing off and not paying attention, falls from his seat! Seeing the danger, he wisely dashes to take cover in the jungle. The Count and the Baron hang on to the wildly shaking howdah for their dear life!
Count Falroun, fearing the imminent collapse of the howdah, shouts out in panic, "Help! Calm the elephant down!" Baron Bomande, however, shouts back in return, "No, protect the porters!"
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"MMMmm snakes are gud food! Not so gud if dey bite you. Selima or Rogar help keep big 'stomper' quiet? We gets dem snakes fer suppah!"
Luurg steps over and thrusts his spear at the green baby snake, hoping to secure himself some supper. However Luurg spends most of his focus on 'stomper' not stompin him and his thrust goes wide of the small snake.
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Without hesitating, Gallix charges past Uesugi to aid the porters. He shouts at the snake as he swings a spiked fist at the large snake attacking the vulnerable men and women leading their expedition, but he keeps his defenses up as he recalls the effects of the snakes he had faced before. "Over here, ya overgrown garden snake!"
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Split between getting the elephant under control and taking out the large snake, Rogar opts for the martial route. He roars at the snake, sounding more feral than he's ever done, and Ivar resonated with it. He then pulls out his large axe, steps close and takes a mighty swing.
After delivering his mighty blow, Rogar barks an order at Ivar.
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Rogar steps up and drives a mighty cleave into the snake, splitting a big gash along its body. The snake rears up in pain but seeing Ivar dash around, takes an opportune bite at it, but the pain hampers its attack and misses. Between the dog's bite and Gallix's fists, the snake is decimated, trashing out its life on the ground, before it could reach its young. The frozen porter collapses onto the floor in relief.
Meanwhile, Uesugi attempts to pull down on the elephant's ears, which he heard could calm it down, but the beast easily rips his ears out from his grasp. Luurg attempts to skewer one of the tiny snakes in hopes that might calm down the elephant, but the elephant's legs throws off his aim. The elephant continues to trash about wildly, the Count and the Baron holding out to the howdah and shouting out in alarm, with Raevin desperately trying pulling on the reins to bring it under control...
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Seeing that the big snake has fallen, Selima does what she can to help calm the elephant. She moves to it's side so the beast can see her well and speaks in a gentle, soothing tone. "Easy now, it's alright. Thirsty will take care of those nasty snakes. Calm down now, all is well. All is well."
Once she has the elephant's attention, she points out the snakes to Thirsty. "Go get them, my love. Crush them in your mighty jaws."
The tiger moves up beside the elephant and bites at the closest snake.
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Between Raevin managing the elephant in the driver’s seat, Selima soothing it at its feet and Thirsty crushing one of the tiny snakes into mush between his jaws, the elephant ceases moving about wildly. It is still unsettled though by the remaining snake, trumpeting its trunk occasionally. The mahout quickly dashes out from the undergrowth, adding his efforts to the party in calming down the beast.
The remaining snake slithers up towards Luurg who attempted to skewer it but its fangs is unable to pierce his thick boots. The party then quickly makes short work of it. Only then does the elephant quiet down completely.
Count Falroun massages his head, where a large bruise is forming where he hit against the howdah during the mayhem. Although looking pale, he puts up a brave front, however. ”I’m fine. It’s just a bruise.” Baron Bomande, however, looks apprehensive and expresses genuine concern. ”Young man, a head wound is not something to be trifled with. We would be reaching the site of the tiger’s territory in a few hours. I know you had wanted to join me for that hunt, but I want you to move on down to the hunting lodge outpost with the rest of the entourage. Get a good rest there, and let the healers take a look at you. I would be fine with the Pathfinders.” The Count looks set to protest, but the Baron raises his hand to stop him. ”Falroun, let me make the decision on this. I would not be able to face Yoliri if anything should happen to you.”
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Gallix overhears the discussion from ground and calls up to the pair of nobles, "Your father-in-law is right, Count Falroun. As one who has suffered his fair share of concussions and head injuries I can promise you that you won't be in your best form for a day or two at least, and it sounds like this beast is a match even for those in top form. Best to take it slow and let the healers patch you up."
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Uesugi listens while the Baron and Count discuss matters. Knowing better than to question the Baron he adds in hope of swaying the count, "Count Falroun the warrior who brings to battle a dull blade is the one that remains forever silent. We must all be at our best when we the time comes to face our quarry. You have proven yourself to be a formidable ally in this hunt. Trust me in knowing that there is no wrong in recovering from the wound you have suffered while we continue forward."
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Luurg spends his time working with the porters to butcher the snake for a meal... if they aren't interested he's happy to have it to himself. Before butchering he'll carefully harvest the poison sacs for later use.
"You gotta take out deez sac tings, dey hold da poison. You no want dat in da meat. I hold on to dem ok? Snake real gud! Kinda chewy."
After hearing the group trying to convince the Count to rest his head, Luurg will pull his arms out from the chest cavity of the snake, tossing some gruesome bits that look somewhat like organs before Rogar's axe chopped them up. He'll stand up, blood covering about 80% of his body, entrails dripping off his hands, and a gall bladder stuck to his forehead "If you really want to keep goin Count I can come up der and give you a full head check ok? It only take mebe 20 minutes?" Luurg will then move towards the elephant shaking clotted blood across the vegetation as he goes.
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Luurg attempts to harvest the venom sac of the snake, but he accidentally burst the sac while butchering it, spilling the venom all over the carcass.
Despite his throbbing head, Count Falroun looks pleasantly surprised over the concern that his father-in-law has shown. Somewhat embarrassed, he covers up for it by turning to your party instead. In his current state, Uesugi’s metaphor about sharpness of blades flies over his head, but he does reply to Gallix and also the party in general, ”Thank you, my friends. When I offered to Valsin to bring on some Pathfinders, I was only looking for bodyguards but I think we have found so much more. Thank you for your concern.“ He unconsciously rubs away some of the snake’s blood that Luurg had splattered on him before continuing, ”Father, I trust that they are more than up to the task of keeping you safe. I’ll bow out from the tiger hunt, then.”
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A few hours after their encounter with the snake, you reach a place where a small stream crosses the trail. Baron Bomande explains, ”This is the stream my fallen friends and I were following when the tiger ambushed us 5 years ago. We’ll break off from the trail to find the tiger’s territory on foot from here.” He gathers some supplies and equipment which he distributes among your group, while Count Falroun sets off on the elephant with the porters farther down the trail to a hunting lodge outpost less than half a day away. ”Good hunting, dear father. And to you my friends, too.” Still somewhat pale from the snake encounter, the Count waves you goodbye as the entourage splits.
After following the stream for an hour, the jungle opens up into a wide grassy clearing bisected by a shallow, burbling stream. In the center of the clearing lies the partially eaten carcass of a gaur. Its throat has been torn open, and the grass all around the dead bison is covered in dried, sticky blood.
”Ah, good! This is where we will set up our ambush for the tiger. The kill is fresh, which means the tiger will likely return to finish its meal later tonight.”
The aging hunter instructs you on how to set up machans — a type of portable hunter’s blind — in the trees around the clearing. The machans are mounted 20 feet up in the lower branches of the trees and camouflaged by branches and leaves. Once the machans are in place, the baron directs the party to climb into the machans. ”Come, get ourselves up there for the ambush. The tiger won’t come if he detects unfamiliar scent on the ground, but will ignore it if it comes from the trees.” He pauses to look at Ivar and Thirsty. ”Hmm, I’m not sure how you would get them up there, but find some way. I do not want this hunt to be jeopardised because our quarry caught a whiff of us. I have some rope if you need it.”
”Once night falls, do not descend until we are ready to spring the ambush. Similarly, do not use any light that would scare away our prey until the attack. It is close to full moon, so we would have some lighting.” With that, despite his limp, the Baron makes his way dextrously up one of the machans.
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"You make good call Count, you no wanna pass out mid tiger hunt den wake up wid no leg!"
Luurg spends a fair bit of time surveying the site after smearing himself with gaur dung to mask his scent. "Many hoof prints but no tigers. Dat tiger must be very light on his feets. Or mebe Luurg has head wound too and can't find em."
Luurg then helps set up the curious tree blinds. "Deez tings look gud. When I hunt it just me, no need such big tings. Hope dey work gud Baron."
Once all the blinds are set up and people start getting into position, Luurg looks at Thirsty and rubs his poop smeared gut in thought. "Selima I have an ideas. Thirsty still little tiger right? Not full growed? If dis other tiger full growed, he no like smell of smaller boy tiger eating his food and get mad. He come in mad and no tink gud, easier to fool? Thirsty could go pee on some trees and dah gaur, make dat other tiger real mad."
Afterwards Luurg will climb up into the far northern blind. "I see gud at dark. If I see someting I hoot like monkey 2 times ok?" He then demonstrates an eerie monkey hoot we've heard a few times so far.
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Gallix does his best to make himself useful as the expedition arrives at the campsite. When the group begins to ascend into the machans, he chooses the one nearest to the gaur corpse, knowing that, if he is going to be of any use in subduing the beast, he will need to be able to reach it quickly. He signals to Uesugi to follow him into the same blind. They had come to work as an effective pair in their previous mission, and Gallix knew he could use that kind of help against a dangerous beast like a large, mad tiger.
He fails to make it into the Machan the first time, but he continues to attempt the climb all the same.
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Thirsty readily bounds up the tree up to the machan, finding purchase on the rough bark and branches of the tree with his strong claws. Selima follows shortly behind up the rope ladder.
With that, the party and the Baron settle down for the wait. The sun sets shortly after, and a nearly full moon rises closely after from the east, bathing the area in silvery light. Other than the sounds of cicadas chirping, the distant hooting of monkeys, and the occasional rustling of leaves, the jungle is peaceful as night falls. For now.
About an hour after night falls, though, the silence is suddenly shattered by the voice of Count Falroun, shouting out in pain, alarm and weakness, ”Father! Father… help! The tiger… the tiger got us. Help, it’s coming! Help!” The voice comes from the east, but you see no signs of him with the dim lighting and thick undergrowth in that direction.
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"Falroun!" Baron Bomande shouts in the direction of the voice in alarm. "No, it shall not take you, too!" Grabbing his musket with one hand, the Baron attempts to descend the rope ladder quickly. However, in his haste and with his limp, his leg snags on a jutting branch. He loses his balance and falls from the machan, hitting the jungle floor with a loud thump! You distinctively hear a crack, and when he stands, he holds his side, grimacing in pain with a broken rib. The Baron grits his teeth and limps his way towards the voice.
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Gallix scowls deeply as the Count's voice rings out through the trees. This doesn't seem right, he thinks, and his suspicions seem validated when Uesugi rushes down from the machan. "Right, I'm coming," he says, and he begins to climb down after the samurai.
The brawler shows his agility as he nimbly descends the rope. That is when he hears the Baron's cry, followed seconds after by a series of sounds.
*thump* *crack* *moan*
Turning around, Gallix sees the Baron rise to his feet, clutching his side, and begin to run toward the source of his son-in-law's voice. Gallix chases after the Baron as quickly as he can and calls out to the man, "Baron Bomande, wait! It could be a trap, and now you're hurt. Get back to the machan. We'll check this out."
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Both Uesugi and Gallix descend from their machan rapidly. Gallix shouts a warning to the Baron, but he seems spellbound and ignores him completely.
Before either of the two can get closer or anyone else can react, a large beast suddenly burst forth from the undergrowth, charging straight at Baron Bomande! It is a strange-looking creature with a badger-like head, hoofs of a stag, striped haunches and tail of a tiger, and a wide mouth with sharp ridges of bone instead of teeth. With this fierce looking jaws, it bites down on the Baron but at the last minute, stumbles over a tree root and misses.
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"LIGHT the area! Barbarian pull the Baron to safety."
Uesugi will drink his potion and then run towards the Baron.
Uesugi closes off all surrounding sounds but the area where the Baron is located and charges into the darkness. As he moves over the warm vegetation he lets the blade take over, slowly closing his eyes focusing only on the image of the creature in his mind. At the last moment Uesugi launches himself into the darkness driving his blade in one fluid motion.
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Luurg looks around once he hear's the Count calling for aide. The Count shouldn't be here, that tiger must have ambushed the rest of the party. I'm impressed he was able to find us so well, I guess he's more than just a talking head after all.
Once he sees the strange beast he springs into action. "Dats da oddest tiger I've ever seen! We gotta save da Baron else Bossman be pissed!" Luurg will grab a coconut off his belt and shake it violently, mixing up the chemicals hidden within, then tosses it in the direction of the 'odd tiger' "Hope you like coconuts!" He then climbs most the way down the ladder at half speed.
The nimble creature deftly dodges the exploding coconut, only catching a few drops of the chemicals on its flank. Raevin attempts to shoot it with his bow but the arrow flies wide overhead. Rogar starts to climb down the ladder methodically, while Ivar looks down at his master from above.
Selima quickly realizes that something is very wrong. Heeding Uesugi's call, she lays a hand on Thirsty's pack saddle and casts a cantrip. The pack begins to glow like a bright torch, momentarily blinding poor Luurg. Then she points out the Baron and his peril. "Go, my love! Go quickly and Defend him!"
The gleaming white tiger leaps from his perch and lands solidly on deft paws that seem to be in mid-run before they even touch the ground. He charges across the narrow stream to come to the Baron's aid.
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The vegetation is thick and it causes Uesugi to pay more attention trying to maneuver into better position than he would have liked to. He moves closer aided by the light now radiating from the large white cat allowing Uesugi to truly see what he is fighting.
"Baron! Look that is not Count Falcon! Awaken from whatever wu jen trickery clouds your mind!" Uesugi yells this at the Baron hoping that he truly sees what is going on.
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Selima watches worriedly from the machan as Thirsty streaks toward the danger like a shining white comet. "Baron, Thirsty is coming to help! He will protect you!" She called out, hoping the time spent near the young tiger would allay his fears. She fumbles with her light crossbow, loading a bolt into the mechanism.
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A circle of light suddenly burst forth around the white tiger as Selima lays a spell on him. Like a glowing comet, Thirsty leaps 20ft gracefully down from the machan, barely any wind knocked from him, and dashes to the pseudo-tiger. Uesugi similarly closes onto the beast, whilst shouting a warning to the Baron.
The Baron shakes his head, as if clearing some cobwebs from his mind. Expecting either Count Falroun or a tiger, he is taken aback by this strange beast. However, he starts when his eyes fall upon a bullet wound scar on the rear flank of the creature. "You! You were the beast! I will get my revenge!" Baron Bomande roars in fury. He takes one step back, lifts up his musket and fires at the beast. *BOOM* At this close range, it is almost impossible for him to miss, as the bullet punches through the left shoulder of the beast. The creature screams in pain, with a hauntingly human-like voice.
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The light from Thirsty's shadow suddenly illuminates the area - and the beast - with perfect clarity. That's no tiger or I'm an orc, he thinks to himself. As the light touches him, he makes a quick decision. Uesugi and Thirsty are both standing to the north of the beast, pulling its attention away from the jungle. If Gallix could move around behind the tree with the Baron's machan in it, he could attack from the forest. Without hesitation the brawler dashes behind the tree and along the edge of the clearing, finally stopping when he hears the shot of the Baron's musket and the beast's cry of pain.
Nowhere to run now, you monstrosity!
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Either oblivious or otherwise, the beast ignores the party who is starting to surrounding it. Snarling in anger at Baron, it steps forward. The Baron tries to dodge out of the way, but his limping leg is slow to move, and the beast rips savagely into his thigh. With a wrench, it jerks the Baron off balance who falls prone at its feet!
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Luurg's eyes dilate considerably as they try to adjust to the bright new light and the flurry of bodies rushing to aid the Baron. Dis no gud, dat ting really want to eat da Baron, I better hurry!
Luurg, who's already 15' down the ladder will drop the remaining 5' then attempt to pick up a head of steam and make a running long jump over the stream. But as he plants to jump his feet hit some soft sand and he isn't able to quite clear the distance. He finishes wading the last bit of stream/bank and hustles over, belly jiggling, coconuts clanging, to stand over the top of the Baron. "You no eat Baron you giant tiger monkey! We gonna eat YOU!"
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Uesugi watches as the hunter named Rogar falls from the tree and draws his ax. He moves to circle the creature now that Rogar has engaged it. Where is the barbarian? only to catch a glimpse of the barbarian now also moving into position.
"Foul beast spawned of wu jen trickery FACE ME and know the face of the one who will kill you today! Kiiii YA!"