"Oh, wow, now that's somefin'" Chana draws back for a moment in fear and admiration for the massive creature.
As soon as it attempts another swipe, she comes to a realization that they're going to need to intervene and quickly jumps off her horse. She rushes over to the lion-ish creature, draws her scimitar, and stops just short of engaging, taking cover behind a tree while the rest of her allies assemble.
"Anyone catch a wink of one of these before?"
At the sight of the creature Amandine's blood chills. There was no shortage of bestiaries at the bookstore, so she knows exactly what the thing is.
She dismounts but doesn't have any standout ideas on how to proceed further.
"In books I've seen drawings, yes. It's a manticore. They are probably magical in origin, but long ago. They're intelligent enough so don't expect it to behave like an animal. It can throw the tail spikes by lashing its tail. This one looks bigger than usual I think. This is bad news."
The hunt-trained mount proves amenable, enabling Olivia to rapidly dismount - her comrades close behind her. Moffis dives for cover within the hollow of an old, fallen tree. He squirms his way inside as the manticore pounds upon the dead trunk with its heavy, clawed paws.
Amandine draws her rapier, but looks to Olivia for guidance on how to approach the beast.
"We have to do something quickly, before it gets to Moffis! But how do we approach it?"
Although the shot from the relic is only a glancing wound, it is enough to distract the manticore from the hapless peasant hiding within the log. The fearsome beast forgets about Moffis entirely and turns to face your hunting party.
"A trap, is it?" the magical beast growls in guttural Common Taldane. "You should have simply kept offering sheep as tribute!"
Chana jogs forward to stand side by side with Olivia, scimitar in hand and ready to defend the paladin if it comes to it. She calls out "Wots all this about tribute? If someone owes you tribute, why are you taking it out on this poor guy? And if tribute is what you need, maybe we can make it up to you."
She eyes the manticore carefully for deception, but hopes that one of the more silver-tongued members of their group would step up to negotiate - if it comes to that.
The manticore plants its large paws and gathers up its height, like a terrible lion sitting proudly.
"I am the lord of Meratt and master of the Verduran," he declares. "Your fragile kin call me the Iron Lash! These lands are my hunting grounds, and all who would stray into the forest are fair game."
Under her breath, Chana hisses "I dun fink its gonna like that one Oliv." and readies to fight. If it looks like she has an opening, she casts barkskin on herself with a chittered curse.
"Alright Lord of Meratt, looks like Oliv here doesn't like you. Hope you're ready to run."
Olivia’s answer to her question doesn’t help Amandine at all. She has nothing to shoot the manticore with. She does look around for a second or two for a tree limb or maybe a rock to hoist at the fearsome creature, but quickly decides trying anything of the sort would just be pathetic. Amandine is likewise unwilling to just run up to the monster waving her rapier. She doesn’t doubt for a moment it would tear her to pieces almost instantly.
That leaves words as her only option, and Amandine doesn’t have much to work with there. No particularly credible threat to level at the manticore, no chips to bargain with, and no reason at all to think it would want to avoid violence.
”This is no trap, we heard the man cry out and came to help him. We simply want the man unharmed. We will take him and clear out” she says, her voice already hinting at resignation to failure.
On the periphery of this thicket, Photine does her best to simultaneously prepare her magic whilst holding back Greenly from immediately launching into a reckless assault upon the manticore.
Olivia's defiance merely irritates, rather than intimidates, the monster, and the Iron Lash appears ready to swing its spiked tail in the knight's direction. However, Amandine's appeal halts the manticore's attack - at least for now.
"And what do I gain from showing mercy to my prey?" he asks with derision. "I hunger yet. Of course, aside from offerings of meat, I also fancy treasure that befits my might and prowess."
Chana steps up close to Amandine, whispering "You fink we 'ave anything to offer it? Maybe somethin' to lead it out to Lord Titus' group? Two rats, one stone, kinda thing."
It startles Amandine to find the manticore is willing to bargain at all. Of course she has nothing of consequence to bargain with. But f&!# it, if we're actually where we're at, I'll just have to go for it.
Amandine looks at the manticore for a moment, to let him know she's briefly studying him. Then she begins.
"You are without question terrifying Iron Lash. As you can easily see, we have only what we are carrying with us. None of our possessions are beautiful or large, but a few of them are something even more special than those things. They are magical. I will show them to you, and you may choose one from among them. For your appetite, we can offer a horse as well."
Amandine gathers a few items quickly, Chana's parasol, Photine's hat, Olivia's rope, and her own boots and a potion of Hide From Animals from her pouch. She lays them together, to display them on the ground.
"Now, if you look at them carefully, they will reveal their inner power to you." Amandine concentrates on them as well, and with Prestidigitation they all take on a luminous yellow color.
Amandine quickly focuses her mind again, this time on what she will say next.
"As you can see, most of them are not a good fit for you given your size. But this one", Amandine points to the vial, "might be of great interest to you."
"Have you ever heard of the Sun Orchid Elixir? It is probably the rarest liquid in the world. Only perhaps a half-dozen people, including it's creator, have ever drank the elixir. Doing so grants immortality. This vial contains an imperfect copy of the Sun Orchid Elixir. Drinking it doesn't grant immortality, it merely doubles one's lifespan. But that is still a pretty good result, wouldn't you say?"
"The other items are useful, but I think very difficult for you to use. I am sorry we are so small compared to you. My boots allow me to move through pant growth unhindered. The parasol protects one from not only the sun, but fire as well. When the rope is used for climbing, one can never slip and fall. The hat allows its wearer to see in complete darkness."
"Of course the choice is yours, but the math seems simple. Double your years and a bigger meal in return for the man."
"One last thing. And please forgive my directness on this subject. It may occur to you that you can take all these things from us by force and keep the man. But I will point out that the vial holding the elixir is very fragile. I can break it with my foot in an instant and the liquid will drain away into the soil, lost forever."
"What do you say?"
The manticore's eyes glitter like those of a miser gazing upon a heap of gold measures.
"My reign over the Veduran will be endless," the Iron Lash says with a throaty sigh, clearly too overcome by the ruse offered up to him to fully understand how it works - or rather, how it's suggested to work. Pride visibly supplants hunger within the manticore's foremost desires. Even before he speaks again, you are certain that the hunter's simple mind has fallen for Amandine's bluff.
"Take the man and go. I accept your tribute," the Iron Lash declares.
Chana dips into the hollowed log and pulls Moffis out with a grunt. She gives the Iron Lash a sidelong glance, then turns all her attention to getting the fellow to safety before the manticore can change his mind and attack the group. If necessary , she carries the man in her arms.
Once the team is further away from the manticore, she grins "Powerful fellow, but an awful lot like the nobles around here too. You looked like you wanted to run him through Oliv?"
When Amandine sees the manticore has truly fallen for her ruse, her heart dislodges itself from her throat.
She gathers up the other objects she had laid out on display, careful to keep her hands well clear of the potion.
"You will have many, many years to now to reflect on your excellent judgement today" she remarks to the manticore as she moves to return the objects she borrowed from the other to each of them.
When she hands the rope to Olivia, Amandine touches her hand to establish a Message link. In her lowest, barely audible whisper she reassures the paladin.
"We can still hunt the manticore, at a time of our choosing and when circumstances won't allow him to hold hostages."
When they retreat with Moffis, Amandine leaves her horse behind but untied. So at least he'll have a sporting chance.
After consuming the potion, the Iron Lash beats its powerful wings, buffeting the thicket with torrents of wind, and leaps into the air. Moffis' shivers do not cease until the beast has slipped out of sight beyond the treeline. Even then, the dairy farmer's face remains pale and bloodless, his eyes agog.
"Th..thank you," he stammers, forcing the words past the lump in his throat. The ox costume the count's men outfitted him with is torn and soiled. "When I rose this morning, I feared I might die on this hunt, but I figured it would be by some noble's arrow. Not the teeth and claws of a monster. Thank you. A thousand times, thank you."
Chana whistles, checking to see if their bloodhounds are still somewhere nearby. She looks visibly uncomfortable at Moffis' effusive praise "Ah well, it wasn't anything."
She looks up and listens to try to determine if any of the other hunting parties are nearby.
"We caught our, uh, quarry. Think we have time to mess up Lord Titus' little group?"
Aside from Moffis' ragged breathing, the forest remains quiet. The Iron Lash's brief rampage scared away nearby birds and beasts, leaving this span of broken trunks and upturned soil almost eerily silent and still.
The Brashen Deeps are about a league in breadth, consisting of hilly pine forest run through with rocky creeks and shallow caves. Similarly broad hunting grounds were assigned to each party to avoid overlap - although certainly not making it impossible.
If you return to your horses and make haste, Amandine estimates that you can ride south and reach the hunting grounds assigned to Lord Titus in about 45 minutes.
Amandine is pleased with the outcome, enough so that her face grows a little pink from Moffis and Olivia's compliments.
"The vial was actually a potion, but not one of much value. It just causes animals to be blind to you if you want to hide from them. I don't know enough about manticores to be sure he wouldn't be able to tell there was no magic if there's really wasn't any."
"Besides, I expected him to be less easily fooled. Given what I claimed it could do, there is no way to know if it really worked without waiting many years to see. The obvious next question for him to ask would have been 'how will I know it's truly what you say it is'? I could then tell him it was a smart question, and one often asked by potential buyers. My answer would have been the maker always includes a minor immediate effect as a guarantee. I would have invited him to test it by approaching an animal. He would be able to do so easily, despite what he is."
Amandine shrugs. "It's a bad lie, but I hoped he would be only smart enough to ask the question, not question the 'proof' I offered."
In answer to Chana's question, Amandine says "Why not? The hunt for us is finished otherwise. We might as well see if we can poach from Lord Titus."
"It would be truly delicious if we could." Amandine smiles at the thought.
"Moffis, can you find your way home from here? We'll be moving fast on horseback. I don't see any reason for you to return to the mansion, especially after what you've just been through."
"You've got yourself a talent for griftin' Amandine. That thing with the potion was one of the classics. But it helped that the manticore was dumb as a brick. Who'd just believe in a story about an elixir that makes you immortal?" Chana shrugs on her way back to the horses.
"It's going to be a while until we catch up with Titus. Might be done by then. But let's do what we can." She looks at Moffis "Hope the other people unlucky enough to be prey didn't hit as much trouble as this guy."
At a sudden thought, she adds "Moffis, take my horse and go on ahead. I've got another idea." Once he's agreed and isn't in line of sight of the group, she takes a seat on the ground. She takes Snips out of her vest and begins chittering quietly to him while he skitters back and forth. At one point, Snips halts, and in that instant Chana is replaced by a sorry looking eagle.
With bent wings and a gnarled feather-less face, as well as uncannily non-bird-like teeth, she looks rather less like a natural animal and more like some kind of aberration. Snips seems to not mind though, as he climbs onto her back and the two of them fly up into the air.
Moffis accepts the reins to the horse with trepidation.
"You have my thanks, my ladies. I owe you my life. But shouldn't you bring me back with you?" the costumed dairy farmer asks. "I don't want your noble friends to mock you for returning empty handed. Also, I can't really mount a horse on my own."
Amandine looks off in the direction of Chana's flight.
"Yeah, 'unsettling' pegs it. I think it was the teeth in the beak that got under my skin..."
She's surprised by Olivia's follow up question about bothering Titus though. She figured Olivia would be enthusiastic about the notion.
"Well, I don't know exactly. Chana's excited about the idea. I figured you would be too. I guess it's that he's a creep and anything that irks him is good?"
When Moffis expresses some hesitance about leaving she becomes less sure about what's next for them.
"Why don't we just wait here and see what Chana has to say when she gets back?"
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"I suppose... I'd prefer to beat him fairly at his own game. Though, perhaps we've already attracted enough ire from him. It is only a game, after all. I get competitive sometimes."
Olivia makes sure the horses are doing alright, then says "How about a compromise? Let's slowly make our way out of this forest, just in case the monster decides to come back. Meanwhile we can talk about where we should go?"
If that's agreeable, Olivia will help Moffis onto Chana's horse.
Amandine is agreeable. ”Fair enough. Unless we hear news from Chana that changse things we’ll go back.”
Anyone paying much attention to her at all wouldn’t doubt Amandine isn’t loving her trip through the woods anyway. It’s obvious in the way she touches things, steps over obstacles, and looks about with squinted eyes and a slightly wrinkled nose.
Once his shock subsides, having just witnessed a veiled noblewoman transform into an eagle, Moffis eagerly accepts Olivia's help into the saddle.
"Thank you kindly, Lady Espinosa," he mutters shyly.
Leading Chana's horse by the bridle (as the dairy farmer has no idea how to coax the animal forward) further slows your trek through the brambles of the Brashen Deeps.
"I can't thank you enough for saving me," he gushes. "If you ever need cheese for your larder, I can send my boy over with my best. No cost, even."
You see their peasant prey a short distance ahead of them. From afar, she could be mistaken for a stag, if only for the exaggerated antlers affixed to her head. She scrambles over fallen logs and dives through thickets, desperately fleeing the men on horseback.
A ravine lies just ahead. If she could reach it, she could perhaps lose her pursuers, as their horses would be unable to cross. However, at their current pace, Lord Titus and his cronies will catch her just before she reaches the edge. However, an intervening distraction could slow them just long enough for her to escape.
Chana communes emotionally with Snips for a few moments, trying to gauge if the rat would be up for some potentially dangerous action. She sends waves of excitement and danger, and gets back the same in response. Taking that to be a sign of agreement, she flies low into the gap between Titus' hunting party and the peasant. She pauses for a just a moment at the base of a tree... and wills Snips to flow free and multiply!
She swoops forward and then banks around, getting ready to pick Snips back up after his distraction is complete.
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Snips spreads into a carpet of rats, scurrying through the underbrush towards the hunting party. They sneak up close to lay and ambush, and then leap forward (and if possible up) at the horses, hunting dogs and hunters.
They aim for horse legs, dog hides, and any particularly smug-looking humans, biting and scratching for only a few moments of distraction before they split and scurry back into the forest. They flow up into the trees and out of the reach of any chomping maws or stomping hooves.
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"You're very welcome." Lidia replies as she tries to direct him into how to ride a horse. "In the world of nobility, reputation is everything. If you can find ways to sing praise to our Ladies ... Chana and Amandine back in your home, then that would be a great favour to us."
What was your nobility family name?
Amandine picks up on what Olivia is doing.
"Yes, it would be helpful to us Betonys since we're newcomers here."
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"Oh, well I'm not much one for singing," he nervously chuckles, not quite grasping the metaphor, "But I can certainly let folks know that the Betonys are right decent. You may soon have plenty of knocks on your door from folks looking to sell their goods. These days it seems like the nobles is the only ones with any money to spend, but it's getting harder to find any who won't cheat you."
Moffis emphasizes his disdain by gesturing down at the tatters of the ox costume clinging to his frame.
"Sour butter, indeed!" he huffs, the indignity seeming to erase the memory of his recent near-death experience. "I ain't got much in this world, but I've got pride in my work. That's the mark of a real man of Taldor, I tell you!" he says with a waggle of his raised finger.
.....
Lord Titus barely manages to stay in the saddle as his horse rears violently, lashing out with its forelegs to no avail against the swarm of rodents climbing and biting upon it. The lord's cronies do not share his horsemanship, with one sharp-nosed lady tumbling free from her saddle while a flat-chinned galoot falls with his leg tangled in the stirrups, getting dragged through the brush as his horse bolts from the attacking swarm.
Titus slaps at the rodents now scaling his riding breeches. For each one he flings away, a dozen more bound forth to vex him. His efforts only earn him several bloody bites upon his fingers. He bellows curses that echo off the trees in words that Snips cannot understand and Chana cannot hear.
From above, Chana the eagle espies the peasant woman close the distance to the ravine. As Lord Titus' hunting party struggles to collect themselves after the rats' attack, retreating just as suddenly as they attacked, she reaches the edge and scampers down. At the bottom, she runs northward beneath the lee of the ravine's edge.
Chana flies another couple of passes across the space between the ravine and the hunting party, making sure that Titus and his crew aren't going to dismount and head down into the canyon in pursuit of their quarry. If they don't, she and Snips ride the thermals back across the Brashen Deeps. She lands out in the woods out of line of sight of any nobles or other passers-by and transforms back into her human form.
Snips scurries back into her vest and the two of them head over to the Betony staging area right outside the woods, to regroup with the rest of the party.
If she sees the rest of the party, she gives them a nod, grinning behind her veil "No problem. Don't rub it in too hard if he comes back mad."
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"We're not doing amazing for money compared to the average aristocrat" Lidia replies. "But the Betonys can absolutely buy things such as food or wood. We could also make use of a butler or a couple maids, oh and a cook too. I can't wait for chow."
She's about to get distracted with the idea of food when Moffis starts cursing. Now getting more serious, she says "A man, or woman of Taldor ought to be proud of their work. Their dedication to their profession is so important for the community at large. Without food providers, like yourself, there wouldn't be anything for our troops to eat. There wouldn't be provisions in the winter, and there wouldn't be time for anyone to do anything other than forage or hunt for their next meal. It's the pride that the common folk put into their work that keeps this nation running. We can't eat half-made cheese and expect to do anything useful. And neither can the aristocrats get away with making half-made laws that do nothing but serve their own pride. Pride not spent on their work or duties, but only on themselves."
When their masters command them to resume tracking their human prey, the hounds can't. The peasant woman's scent is no overwhelmed by that left behind by the Snips swarm. Titus and his cronies coax their horses on through the forest before skidding to a halt at the ravine's edge. They scan the rocky bottom but cannot find their prey.
"Wow," Moffis gasps, awed by the knightly woman's oratory. "I sure wish there were more nobles like you, Lady Espinosa."
Your horses slowly bring you to the edge of the Brashen Deeps. As you emerge from the thick stands of trees and brambls, you find an again human Chiara awaiting you.
"So...shall we ride back to the palace?" Moffis asks, unsure of himself.
Amandine isn't opposed to a short break in the trip. She looks about for a (relatively) clean place to sit, and does so carefully.
"What happened Chana?"
"Go ahead Moffis, we'll be right with you." Chana ushers Moffis forward so the three women can talk a little more privately. She lowers her voice to tell Amandine and Olivia how things went.
"Titus an' 'is boys are still muckin' about in the woods right now. Snips gave 'em a little scare, nipped at their 'orses, nothin' big, but enough to make them and their 'ounds lose the scent. Lady they were chasin' found 'erself a little nook in a ravine to hide in, and they skipped right over 'er." Chana grins behind her veil, then straightens "I figga they'll be comin' 'ome with their tails between their legs. And the lady they were chasin' will be gettin' 'ome too once the way's clear." She pats her vest. "Snips did a right good job."
With the secret bits relayed, she hurries on ahead to rejoin Moffis and start back toward the palace.
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"Wow," Moffis gasps, awed by the knightly woman's oratory. "I sure wish there were more nobles like you, Lady Espinosa."
Olivia bites her lip. The praise ending in her false name reminds her of the lie, and keeps her in check. "I try, Moffis. Thank you."
"Good job, uhm, Snips. I hope their dogs can't catch her scent. I fear for the others."
About one hour after the confrontation with the Iron Lash, your horses carry you along one of the garden lanes cradling the palace grounds. You are one of the last hunting parties to return, with only Lord Titus' group yet to arrive.
A small crowd excitedly gathers around Baron Okerra on the edge of the topiary garden. Drawing closer, you see that - rather than human prey - he has brought back a boar, secured upon an improvised litter pulled by the noble's horse.
"While tracking my...quarry, this brute erupted from the brush," the baron explains to his audience. "It gave my original quarry the chance to escape, so I thought this better than returning empty handed," he says with the hint of a smile.
The other two hunting parties, composed of minor nobles such as Baronet Paben and distinguished guests like Lieutenant Gortius, brought back their peasants alive and relatively well. Their torn costumes reveal the scratches of someone who blundered through pricker bushes, and they have more than their fair share of bruises and welts, but the peasants bear no wounds from arrows or spears.
Lady Olivia Vernisant
