Fish looks at the runes with wide gear eyes before his gaze settles on the rune of razing. "Fish wants that one" the Kobold says as he points out the rune of razing.
When Fish grinned at Nagbur during Almalik's rant yesterday, he must have noticed the scowl on the blue's face. But the vitalist managed to hold his tongue -- and in fact was uncharacteristically quiet throughout the rest of the day and so far this morning. Until...
"You are rude but since you saved us I think you should still receive this reward."
"Rude! RUDE! Nagbur tell you something, you stupid waste of skin, and you LISTEN!" he explodes, jabbing a finger at the old man for emphasis. "You make wah-wah sound about ooh, not open gate that time of day, maybe you let us in we slaughter you, storm too close, all be weak excuses! Was afternoon, we got here!" He sweeps his hand back toward the others. "We be four people and only two longshanks, you gots whole big village if we been bad. And we saw how quick you open gate, let us in; not take much time. We pitch tents, make camp even, before storm got here!"
The blue's voice changes to a growl deep in his throat. "You longshanks left us to die. We stronger than cubis, smarter too. We gots chance. But me think you do same thing to weak travelers. Women, children, babies. Stand in towers and watch them die. That no be 'harsh,' that be wrong!" He spits the last part.
He glares at the man. "Nagbur no like longshanks. You show why. Longshanks be stupid, crazy, only care about selves!"
He takes a step back and puts one hand each on Almalik's and Ama's legs. "These be only longshanks Nagbur ever meet what take risk, get hurt, suffer for to help others." He looks up at Almalik. "We not all get along at first but Nabbur proud being seen with these others now." He nods at Fish, indicating that while he's talking specifically about tallfolk, he's including his kobold friend in that declaration.
"You," he says, jabbing a finger at the old man again, "you got no ground, insult longshanks like these! Better you be learning from them! Whole village need to learn! Whole village!"
He folds his arms in front of him and harumphs.
The elder is just finishing up his tattoo on Ama as Nagbur is raging about in the small tent. As he puts the last spots of ink down Nagbur finishes his speech. A fraction of a second later the walking stick, before lying next to the elder, is now on Nagburs throat.
The moment I am finished you leave. I will finish this and be done with you folk. Be glad I hold to what I promise.
He puts the walkingstick back down and starts the tattoo on Almalik.
The elder continues his work and ignores further comments and protests. He even gives a healing tattoo to Nagbur. The moment he finishes he says.
"Done. And now out with you lot!"
He grabs his walking stick and ushers you out of the tent flap.
"I thank you for your efforts but I am glad to rid ourselves of you."
The elder says as you are led out of the entryway. The moment you are through the gate closes behind you.
You head back through the desert and pick up the little fellows you left behind in the oasis. After a very long week you arrive at the point you started. The desert gives way for lusher lands and the people seem a lot friendlier in this town. After some searching around you are able to find the merchant who sent you on this mission. The moment you enter his shop he looks wide eyed at you.
"You survived?! I... Uh... Mean uh. Welcome back! I knew you could do it."
He gives you a very creepy/friendly smile.
"And how did everything go? I trust you helped the little village?"
You tell him the whole story of what happened and he looks intrigued.
"That sounds great. You did way more than I could have expected. Here, give me a moment."
He enters another room and comes back with a sack.
"This is it. Everything I owe you for what you did."
In the sack you find a grand 8000 gold.
"Candles!" Ama exclaims as she grabs the sack.
She quickly takes her share of gold, then throws the sack in front of Almalik's feet. "Woohoo!"
On the way back Fish will start his tail exercises again, and bugs Almalik about the fire stick some more.
Nagbur touches his new tattoo gingerly. "Me think stupid longshanks stick Nagbur extra-hard. On purpose!"
"Not good to make artist angry if you canvas." Fish says with a chuckle. "Fish just glad all lived, and we stronger now."
"It would be in yours, and our best interest that you inform the damn village that we're coming to save us. They wouldn't let us in!"
That said, Almalik happily takes his share of the reward and looks in some annoyance as Ama joyously calls out about candles.
"You... nevermind. And you're right Fish, that mission was brutal and we are stronger for it."
The merchant looks a bit embarrassed at not informing the village.
"I wanted to surprise them... Sorry... I expected them to appreciate it."
He let's it at that and you head back to the guild. Another week of traveling you find yourself back at the trusty inn. The innkeeper greets you and looks a bit surprised at the two children with you.
"You seem to have picked up more than was expected of you. Who are these two?"
She says with a friendly smile. The innkeeper listens to your story in silence, under the joy of some beer and very welcome food.
"Explains why you were away for so long. I will gladly take care of the little two. Please enjoy some rest while I show them around."
While she is away you can hear them talking in the back and upstairs. The boy sounds really enthusiastic when shown the back of the inn.
"These look just like the tools my father used! He used to teach me how to use those. Can I use them? Maybe I can repay the stay with these tools."
The innkeeper gives a friendly reply and seems to find it a fine idea.
After some minutes passed they return.
"It seems we have gained an blacksmith apprentice. He may be able to make some simple equipment for you if you like."
The three sit back down at the table and the children seem at ease in their new home.
"What are your plans for the next mission? Or do you want to rest for a bit first?"
"Resting would be nice for at least a day," Ama tells Vaara.
"Maybe we could meet some of the other guild members, if there are any?"
"It seems we have gained an blacksmith apprentice. He may be able to make some simple equipment for you if you like."
Nagbur grunts and then talks around the food he's still shoveling into his mouth. "He be good kid. For little longshanks, anyway. When one he care for be in danger, he push fear away, attack like any man would be proud."
He jabs his dagger -- a chunk of meat skewered on it -- at the boy. "Me think you be fearsome fighter when you grow up. Maybe someday even good as Nagbur," he says with a grin as he uses his pointy teeth to pull the meat from his dagger.
The innkeeper looks at Ama with a lovely smile.
"I am the other guildmember, currently the only one besides you."
She says with satisfaction.
"I've been running this for some time now. There have been others groups but they got tired of the work after a while. Since you are working on the requests I am tending the inn, normally I would do both."
The group takes the well needed rest and ends up at the table the next morning again. The breakfast of cheese and bread gets interrupted by loud banging and shouting on the door.
Ama ignores the noise and continues to eat. "I like this cheese stuff. It tastes nice on bread."
"Cheese be good. Much tasty," he says with a frown as he looks to the door. "What be loud bang-banging? Hard to concentrate on eating when so much noise!"
Annoyed, he hops down, grumbles his way over to the door, and throws it open. "WHAT! Nagbur be eating!" he barks, as if that were obviously the most important thing in the world.
Which, to a goblinoid... you know... kinda... is...
Fish gets up from eating and goes into the back room. He returns a moment later with a hammer. Fish then opens the front door places the hammer on the ground before promptly shutting the door and returning to his breakfast.
Nagbur throws open the door and gets a meaty fist, meant for the door, full in the face. Immediately after Fish throws down the Hammer near the front door.
The yelling dies down as one of the dwarves standing at the door knocks out Nagbur. The Hammer lands at their feet and they start yelling again.
-Posted with Wayfinder
"Birdies..." Nagbur mumbles from the floor, knocked senseless (well, more senseless than usual). "Noisy birdies."
Almalik rises from his feet as Nagbur is knocked back. He raises a hand menacingly.
"CALM DOWN OR I WILL TURN YOU INTO A RADISH!"
He stalks over to Nagbur, checking on the little goblin to see if he's fine.
"There. Now what hammer?"
A short silence falls as Almalik 'threatens' the two dwarves.
One of the dwarves runs inside and starts shaking Almalik by the jacket, his powerful grip throwing Almalik back and forth.
Seeing that yelling is getting him nowhere, Almalik puts his hands on the dwarf's and looks him in the eye.
"Sir. We will help you with your hammer, but you must show decorum! Please, let me buy you a drink and you can tell us what happened."
He stalks over to Nagbur, checking on the little goblin to see if he's fine.
"Let Nagbur sleep ma, me no want school today," he says, stirring more but not yet back in the moment. Still, it's clear there are no wounds and he's simply been knocked silly for a little while.
THe dwarves calm down a bit.
"We don't have the time to sit down and drink. Our village is in chaos! Our hammer got stolen!"
One of the dwarves look at Almalik as if it should explain everything. The other one looks a little apologetic at Nagbur.
"Sorry for you friend. We are in great haste!"
Both the dwarves now focus on Almalik, looking at him as if expecting him to follow.
There's the sudden sound of coughing in the background, followed by a loud thump. Ama's on the floor, grabbing her throat. "Gha! Ghaaa! GHAAA!!!!"
More coughing follows and a chunk of cheese the size of an egg is launched from Ama's mouth. While Ama seems relieved she's once again able to breathe, the chunk of cheese hits Nagbur's head.
Almalik looks at the rest of his companions, sighing as Ama finishes choking on her cheese.
"Fine, but there had better be a reward for this inconvenience. Lead the."
Fish helps Nagbur back to the table as Amalik speaks to the dwarves. "Dwarves knock hard. Nagbur ok to travel?"
-Posted with Wayfinder
Ama jumps onto her legs and runs up to stairs, to her bed. She places her tent and hot weather outfit underneath her bed, then comes hurrying back. "Let's go!"
Fish helps Nagbur back to the table as Amalik speaks to the dwarves. "Dwarves knock hard. Nagbur ok to travel?"
Nagbur gingerly checks his throbbing nose, and winces as he does so. "Ow." His eyes flick to the doorway before focusing on Fish.
"Nagbur be okay. Except still hungry." He hops off the chair awkwardly. "Travel, where we go? And what be noise about 'hammer, hammer, hammer!'"
After Fish confirms his friend Nagbur is ok, he goes upstairs to retrieve his new mithrial chain shirt and tail spike. He really like the mithrial as it matched his silver scales and was much lighter then his old armor. After attaching his tail spike Fish heads down stairs to see why these dwarves didn't want a perfectly good hammer.
Everyone collects their gear and they hesitantly follow the dwarves who now seem to get back their cool. On the road they tell you that they lost their precious hammer, the hammer of their king. The one sign of how powerful he is. On one day the hammer suddenly disappeared out of the home of the king and some creatures have been seen stalking around the camp. The hammer has an obsidian handle with a elaborately carved D on it. Same as the head, made of steel. They really want the hammer back and greatly appreciate your help. Before long they take you into a forest.
As you enter the forest you get an uneasy feeling. Something about the place is different. It has a magical feel about it. The dwarves ensure you that nothing is the matter.
You head deeper into the forest and come across a sign which says:
No returning
As you stop to inspect the sign the dwarves suddenly disappear in a bush a little ahead. A few seconds later a small humanoid with pointed ears, green eyes, and a wicked grin appears on top of the sign. He carries a bottle in one hand and a club in the other.
"Well ye got yourself in a pinch didn't ya."
He laughs loudly at you and points at the sign.
"No returning from here fellas. You be in a magical forest now. Trust nothing you see. Or the way round for that matter."
He smiles a wicked grin.
"I may offer you a little help in this place. If you are in a pinch throw this coin into the air and call my name, Green."
With a snip of it's finger the small creature disappears in thin air, a small gold coin in the place the creature stood. Leaving you standing alone at a crossroad in the middle of a unknown forest.
Nagbur blinks. "What?"
It all makes perfect sense to Ama, who sees no reason to question the motives of the dwarves are the strange green creature. It all seems like a perfectly natural course of action to her.
Ama picks up the gold coin and heads to the right of the T junction. "I have a good feeling about this!" she says with an honest voice.
Almalik stares incredulously at the small figure.
"What the... I demand an explanation for this! DWARVES! WHERE ARE YOU?!"
As the little figure vanishes and leaves the gold coin the irritable wizard lets out a shout of rage.
"AUGH! Why do we have to become the playthings of insufferable forest creatures? I will not tolerate this kind of shabby treatment. Ama, remind me to actually learn a spell that can turn an idiot dwarf into a turnip so we can avoid this kind of mess."
Sighing, Almalik mutters a detect magic spell and stomps over to inspect the coin.
Almalik finds nothing magical about the coin. The small coin does have a clover printed on it. Ama pockets the coin and quickly moves on into the forest. A glance at the part where the dwarves disappeared reveals no trace of them.
You head right on the junction and see this before you.
The forest is eerily quiet as you walk through it. The path takes a left after a mile or two, another mile reveals another left turn. Rounding the corner of the last turn you hear voices coming from further on the path. Getting a little closer reveals three men trying to hide in a bush next to the path.
"SSSssshhh SSSssshhh SSSssshhh. They are coming. They will never suspect this!"
You hear from one of the men, his head poking halfway out of the bush.
"That no be fair, say 'Danger no way out' after we be in!" shouts Nagbur. "Sign need be on outside!"
Grumbling all the while, he ambles after Ama.
Ama passes the men and continues to walk down the path.
No need to disturb men who are taking a dump.
Fish follows behind Ama and upon reaching the creatures in the bushes he takes the opportunity to slip into the bushes himself.
"Psst! Fish! Where you going!" Nagbur hisses under his breath. Then, concerned about the only other properly-heighted member of the team getting lost, he slips into the woods behind the kobold.
Nagbur and Fish creep into the bush next to the highwaymen and hide there whilst Ama passes them.
"Here they come! SSSssshhh...
Two of the men jump out of the bush whilst the third trips over a root and falls face forward on the ground.
One of the standing men yells at Ama who ignores him. They look a bit confused and see Almalik follow her, they shift their focus on him.
This while the other man whispers in the yelling mans ear.
"There were four of them right?"
Fish jumps out of the bushes and pushes the tip of his sword against the shouting mans back. "Why don't you surrender and we won't hurt you."
-Posted with Wayfinder
Almalik shakes his head at Ama as she just walks off. He then turns to the highwaymen as Fish and Nagbur get the drop on them.
"This is a stick up!" he shouts at them. "Now put down your weapons and nobody gets hurt. You are now our prisoners, but we are agreeable folk who just want information and not fights. If you want a fight, my scaly little friend here will rip out your tongue, cut off your arm with that tongue, and then beat you to death with the arm."
"What a funny little things!" Ama said giggling at exactly the moment the men jumped out of the bushes.
She turns toward the men for a second, then refocuses her attention on the mushrooms she spotted growing on a tree. "Almalik, what are these?"
The two standing highwaymen look really confused and drop their weapons.
"This isn't how it is supposed to happen right?"
One asks the other, who in turn nods.
"I ehhh... We ehhh... uhhh..."
From the bush a stick with a bit of white cloth rises.
Ama picks up the weapons and puts them in her backpack. "thank you."
She then goes back to studying the mushrooms.
Almalik smiles.
"Excellent, that worked out well. Now gentlemen, my name is Almalik Fezana and we have come to this place by extremely irritating circumstance. Praytell, could you explain yourselves? We have no intentions of harming you unless you truly annoy me."
They look a bit doubtful at each other and one of them responds.
"We were trying to get some easy money. That's all. We were told this was an easy way..."
They look a bit unsure of themselves as to why they did it.
Almalik sighs miserably and clenches his hand involuntarily. A trickle of smoke comes from the magic user's fist, a telltale sign of his temper.
"Look. I know I am in a magical forest. And I know that we were following a group of VERY noisy dwarves who just vanished. Who are you and what you doing here? How did you get here? Is there a way out?"
"Why you need money here? You buy way out?" Fish askes as he pokes one of them with his sword.
-Posted with Wayfinder
The couple looks terrified of the group and stumbles on their words.
"Oh those lot! Ah yes they share their wine with us... sort of... We actually don't really know what we are doing here. We eh... live here, up north. We just ended up here one day, striding about untill we came across the sign... couldn't get out ever since. Made the best of it."
They respond to Almalik and Fish.