Areum is growing increasingly impatient with the small creature, which, though not understanding its language, is obviously under some sort of duress. Looking over the others among them who can not converse with the boggard, she gives a shrug, "I believe this...toad...is leading us astray. Just look at how his quivers, and scratches himself!"
Turning to address the creature, Areum speaks slowly, and overannunciates each syllable. "You take us to Rrrriiip. We are not mad at you."
Elliana glanced at Weon and shook her head softly before sighing. "That is not what you are seeing here, it is not deceit but addiction" She said, before translating the beasts words.
She turns to the Boggard and arched an eyebrow, before shaking her head softly.
Elliana relays what she said to the Boggard, before gesturing for the creature to lead on.
The boggard are eager to show you to Rrriiip after hearing Elliana's words and they show you to their village.
There are several Boggards and Grippli on guard in the village around the perimeter, but the thick jungle offers the most protection. In the center of the village there is a fire and some kind of dinosaur cooking. The village is mostly made of sticks and plants found locally, but there is a stone ruin in the center of town with some animal skins for a roof that seems to be an important structure.
You see a Grippli matching Rrriiip's description sitting at the fire speaking in the croaking language of the boggards. He is wearing a magical darkweave armor and has a net and trident at his side that also detect magical. He looks up and greets you .
"Ah, mantis women, and man. Have you come to venture deep into the jungle with me again?"
Rakus takes his chance.
"That is exactly what we need. In fact we are searching for monkey goblins. A skilled guide would be vital and your reputation says as much."
His manner is welcoming and earnest. Rrriiip could be just what they need to find Yoki and more importantly deal with the little monkey goblin without having to go though his entire tribe to get to him.
'Azlanti ruins converted to a Temple? Interesting...'
When Rakus begins to speak, Elliana takes a back foot in the dealings, staring around at the rest of the village, keeping an eye on their surroundings for danger.
'If we can take him in to the jungle, travel for about a day, we could poison him, knock him unconscious then slit his throat. Nice and simple!'
"Well that could be dangerous, but I do know where the monkey goblins here congregate. How does a pound of fire powder and two barrels of fish sound? It is about a day trek north, if you need some provisions I could talk to the tribal leaders to allow you to trade for what you need. "
Kayla does her best to remain out of sight. she is still worried of an ambush.
several times she saw an opportunity but she decided to not take it. The others seems to have a decent plan.
Kayla rolls her eyes at the payment offer.
Once she feels the place is safe enough she will make her way toward the back of the group. then meanders toward the conversation.
Little steep in price for the work Kayla slips in addressing Rrriiip, the look in her eyes tells him she knows what he is asking. and will not be made the fool
the fish is reasonable, and that is what you will get.
"Please, the fire powder my village needs. They have grown...very fond of it." He says choosing his words carefully and seems to be pleading with you.
"Arrangements can be made. If you aid us with the monkey goblins as well as guide us. Then we can inform our superiors of the aid given. They would be more inclined to grant your village some fire powder in compensation. The amount will be dependent upon your service. At the very least your village will get some rather then none, if our goal is achieved then your village will clearly get more. Does that seem reasonable?"
It seemed things may run smoothly after all. The more help they could get with Yoki the better. A guide was good, another fighter was better.
A tracker that works for shiver that he's hooked his whole village on. I wonder if this what angered He Who Walks In Blood.
Zaphani couldn't help but muse to herself while the others did the talking. It seemed the others had the same idea she had, use the Grippli to get to the monkey goblins and then kill him away from his guards. Still, she was wary.
Areum looked over her comrades during the discussion, and, nodding once, she turned to the Grippli.
"Would that indeed you could take us to the monkey goblins, we would be greatly pleased! 'Tis a dangerous place, and your wisdom and guidance could be valued far greater than the modest price you ask. Though, of course, we'll take that offer!" With a wink and a smile, Areum gestured around the camp, "And most gracious indeed would we be to seek provisions before we depart."
She smiled broadly, a rather awkward sight for those who've come to know her, and raised her arms in blessing, "The will of Achaekek be done this day, brothers and sisters."
Rrriiip listens to Weon and smiles and agrees"Let us shake hands then as the humans do, and we will make this deal. Did you want to leave now?"
Rakus would have to bring up a few things later. He shakes the humanoids hand.
"Then we are in agreement. Personally I would like to leave as soon as we can. But I do not speak for all my comrades."
Kayla simply backs up as the others assume the negotiations. She isn't even sure if the others even were concerned about her original offer.
In any event, considering her position, who is she to say otherwise.
Kayla instead wanders the village checking for what kind of food stuff they have. taking a few items for the trip.
Yeah, guess its best to leave then. she says, agreeing with Rakus.
Rrriiip grabs his trident and net and heads out with a few minimal supplies. He begins taking fast strides and has to stop a few times for you to keep up.
Glad to be rid of the Boggards, Zaphani does her best to keep up with the frog person while at the same time exchanging glances with her fellow Mantis.
Once they are a good distance out of the Boggards territory and Rrriiip is a good distance away from the group he whispers.
"Yoki is our priority. Once the monkey goblin has fallen then we can focus on other things. Just remember that the battlefield can be a very dangerous place."
Even at such a distance he did not want to tip his hand to their target. In a perfect world the monkey goblin would die and their cold blooded guide could fall with him during the battle. In that event the tribe would get the full payment they asked for, the mantis do not break their word after all.
Rrriiip brings you to an elevated cliff, and tells you all to keep down. He creeps to the edge of the cliff. He pulls out a collapsible spyglass
Whispering he says "See, down there is the monkey goblin tribe. We have another 4 hours to get there." He offers who ever crawls up with him the spyglass. You see a series of tree houses connected with poorly constructed suspension bridges or simple planks below you in the distance.
Rakus goes up to take a look as well.
"Why four hours?"
He whispers as he looks over the so called settlement, adding.
"You would not happen to know which one is Yoki or how to pick him out?"
"Four hours to ensure we are not seen. The Monkey Goblins can be extremely violent to outsiders. Yoki is in the center of the camp. He wears a headdress made of exotic bird feathers and shiny rocks."
Elliana crawls up on top of the cliff and takes the looking glass when it is offered to her. Before she uses the glass, she turns to Rrriiip.
"How much more daylight do we got? And what do we know about the Monkey Goblins? Can they see in the dark? How many can we assume are down there?"
Her questions asked, she turns her gaze, not to the huts, but to the approach.
"Besmaras Bones... if we get through this, we will deserve a feast afterwards!"
Areum stands further from the ledge than her colleagues, arms folded about her chest as they scout the way ahead with the Grippli. It was a great effort for her to resist kicking the slimy creature over the cliff. He had led the Mantis to their next target; continuing to allow him to live was bordering on the blasphemous.
Kayla joins Elliana by the ledge. taking her turn with the spyglass after Elliana.
scouting the area as Rrriiip described. she tries to get a look at the center of the camp. the most likely location of the "package"
without much thought, instead of handing the spyglass back she tucks it away on her person.
"Pardon me gnome mantis, but that is my spyglass Rrriiip responds.
Kayla looks toward the frog man, I am not mantis.
She pulls out the spyglass and hands it to him, here, <see spoiler>
I'll claim it later
Rrriiip seems confused by Kayla's claim to not be mantis, but accepts the spyglass and places it away.
"Follow me then." He begins to walk down the elevated area down to the jungle below.
Elliana crawls up on top of the cliff and takes the looking glass when it is offered to her. Before she uses the glass, she turns to Rrriiip.
"How much more daylight do we got? And what do we know about the Monkey Goblins? Can they see in the dark? How many can we assume are down there?"
Her questions asked, she turns her gaze, not to the huts, but to the approach.
Perception-1d20 + 5 ⇒ (19) + 5 = 24
"Besmaras Bones... if we get through this, we will deserve a feast afterwards!"
"I do not if the monkey goblins see in the dark, but they are active at night. We have Six hours of daylight left. Their total numbers are unknown, at least several dozen."
"Is there anyway to approach them peacefully?"
Personally he doubted it but it did not hurt to ask and maybe the frog knew something he didn't.
The Grippli consider's Rakus' question, than answers...
"In the past the Monkey Goblins have allowed my people to pass through their lands so long as we brought them some shiny rocks from the beach to the East, but that is another day from here."
As Rakus gets information from the frog, Zaphani has another concern. The assumption is that this monkey goblin wouldn't be as hard to lure away as the Grippli. At some point, either going in or going out and likely both, they'd have to fight and even they couldn't fight that many. Thus, she starts looking for cover, escape routes, and a way they could sneak in close enough to get a clean strike and get out without too much trouble.
"Getting the rocks may get us to Yoki and another day will allow me to prepare proper spells. Does anyone else know about monkey goblins?"
The more information he had the better. Holding off a day would allow not only himself but everyone to prepare. His mind was already awirl with possible plans.
Elliana looked at the Grippli for a moment before frowning slightly. "What can we expect in terms of resistance, between here and the beach? And you say it is another day from here, so we will lose two days in travelling there and back?" She turned to the others and shook her head softly.
"No, it seems like the wrong move. Too long. Things could go wrong. We are almost there. I vote we stay the course and do this thing tonight. We get in, cut the brutes throat then get out. We can celebrate when he is dead!"
While she waits for the others to respond, Elliana tries to call to mind what she knows about the jungles surrounding them.
The Grippli guide listens to Rakus and Elliana then answers "Many things resist in this jungle. It is hard to say. A nomadic tribe of beast riding orcs sometimes passes through that area to hunt for the beasts they train. The Kaneano tribe of Adaro patrols the coast from the under the water in that area, and they sometimes trade me for the rocks. Many beasts and insects reside in the jungle though and I can not promise it will be easy. If you want to go that route though, we need to renegotiate payment." Rrriiip says with a slight smile on his face.
"I would think anything that ensures your odds of survival in our encounter with the monkey goblins would be welcome. Besides the terms of our agreement did not specify the extent of your aid. Even still nothing has been decided just yet. I am sure your suggestion will be considered."
He was trying to squeeze more out of the deal. Not unexpected but the time was not right. If it was unpractical to seek out these trinkets then a day of planning would be better spent. Perhaps Yoki had rivals, no leader was beloved by all. If anyone had skill with traps then setting up a few for their retreat would be wise as well.
"The only thing I agreed to do was guide you to the Monkey Goblins. Anything extra will need further compensation." Rrriiip responds sternly.
Rakus ignored the frog for the moment.
"Xalyth, you may not be aware that not everyone can see in darkness. Does anyone know if the monkey goblins can as well? Or anything about them in detail?"
He needed information or they would be forced to fight the tribe to get to Yoki. Not a pleasant thought considering it was the enemies domain, their home no doubt had some sort of defenses if not only their sheer numbers. They lived in the tree's, as such they already have an advantage of higher ground and the ability to move effectively out of their reach.
KAyla thinks a moment, then ensures Rrriiip is not listening in, I'll go in, we are supposed to be assassins, well at least you guys are. Anyway, I'm the expendable one. not loss to the Mantis by losing me, you guys have a future with them, a chance to climb the ranks whatever. I'll slip in, try to get close, take care of the package and slip back out. If caught, no connection to the mantis at all, I simply work for the Shadow Hand.
she pauses a moment, If I die, then, so be it. I probably should have been dead already.
Rrriiip patiently waits while the group decides on a direction.
Rakus thinks a bit more before speaking.
"Why don't we pull back for now and find a good place to camp tonight. In the morning I can prepare spells and we can make our choice with fresh eyes. Their is no reason to rush into anything. Maybe even a little night time scouting could be considered for those with proper night vision."
A little time and things could be done properly, seemed they lacked information and an accounting of forces. He was not going to underestimate the goblins, more so a target of the mantis god.
Elliana frowns but nods softly, turning to look at the others. "Yes, I agree with our Brother. We should do that. Let us camp!"
You set up camp, but Rrriiip isn't helping. He is foaming at the mouth a bit and shaking. He seems to be crashing worse than the boggards at the camp.
Kayla reluctantly follows the others. she does not say much, as she wonders if any would listen anyway.
She sets up a small sleeping area for herself and keep an eye on Rrriiip. she does not show much sympathy for his condition.
If he dies during the night than so much the better.
After a bit Kayla goes to Rrriiip, your spyglass, I will need it to keep watch. she says a little coldly, her hand out to accept it.