Baron Rudyham rushed alongside everyone to Matsunda's tent, with his musket drawn. The interior of his spacious canvas tent was richly decorated with portable darkwood and silver furnishings, but torn mosquito netting hung above the bed, and a mirror, basin, and various shaving implements lay scattered on the ground. A black leather boot was lying on the floor next to the crumpled remains of a large black spider. Inside the tent Count Matsunda was clutching his now bear right foot.
"What the devil happened in here?" the baron demanded. The count replied in a fearful voice, “Something in my boot bit me—a spider I think. I fell back onto the bed in surprise. My god, Bomande, what if it’s poisonous? I could lose the foot! You brought some antitoxin, didn’t you? Fetch it quickly!” Unfazed, the baron replied, “Ah, bit of luck then. The spiders of Segang aren’t dangerous, not like the scorpions. It’ll probably smart for a bit, that’s all. Next time, check your damn boots!” Clearly Falroun was not reassured by his father in law and the two men began to argue. It wasn't long before they began trying to drag their onlookers into the argument.
"Please help me! Convince him to give up his antitoxin!" Falroun pleaded with the party. Baron Rudyham just shook his head, "I'll confess I brought antitoxin, but it would be waste to use it on a malingerer."
Fain tried to rush over to the spider remains. He flipped it about with the point of his kukri.
"This creature's heart probably weighs one a me."
Alenka made many laps around the elephant, taking it all in. She had never been this close to such an animal before but she also couldn't see what benefits one may gain from combining its essence with their own. Most women she knew were always trying to be more petit, not larger, and most people didn't like a larger nose. "It is a fascinating creature but what are the benefits of using one?"
Turning her face to Fain she adds, "If you think the heart weighs the same as you, the intestines are easily double that."
"Does it have a name? Or do we just call it elephant?"
-----
Alenka followed behind the others, not being overly concerned by what had caused the commotion but being somewhat curious anyways. However, when she saw the spider carcass her interest was piqued and she quickly moved forward with Fain with the same question in her mind...is this a species of spider that is venomous? If so, it would be beneficial to milk it of its poison while it's freshly dead. She pulls out her dissection tools and then puts on a pair of thin but protective gloves before beginning her examination of the spider in earnest.
She glances at the spectacle that is Falroun. "Relax. We will know soon enough if you were poisoned and if you were poisoned, raising your blood pressure by acting as you are will only spread it through your blood stream faster."
Once Alenka was finished with the more interesting of the two specimens, the spider, she moved to the human and looked him over. Needless to say, her bedside manner was lacking.
Baron Rudyham just shook his head, "I'll confess I brought antitoxin, but it would be waste to use it on a malingerer."
"If you would deny aid from one who might be in mortal peril because you do not like him, you might as well kill him now and be done with it," Thrym admonished the older man, wondering if he was truly serious or was just keeping up an act of indifference and hostility. "There's more honor in bloodying your blade openly than allowing others to do your dirty work for you, while you stand back and watch in silence."
"So, Alenka. Will he live without our aid or not?" Thrym asked as he saw her examining the spider in detail. The shaman was already taking out the antidote kit he had purchased prior to their journey, after the others had done their best to school him of the likely challenges awaiting them in the jungle. Not that he had expected they might need to use its content quite this quickly...
Luk-Luk decided to add in her own two coppers. Holding up a hand now glowing, "Be calm! I've magic. And it might be too small to affect you beyond some swelling. Plus Thrym is a holy man."
There was naught the Prestidigitation could do beyond clean the wound nor that Luk-Luk knew of spiders. Yet she did try to help Thrym.
At least Luk-Luk sounded confident and like she knew what was going on, even if she was of no help for Thrym.
"Baron? Are the spiders non-venomous? Or is it a minor venom for slaying vermin? You sir," she looks at Falroun, "are significantly larger then a mouse. Is the spider still here? We could learn more from observing it."
"And you need to heed Alenka's words and calm down," Thrym grunted at the Baron. "We will soon know the truth of the matter."
"Does it have a name? Or do we just call it elephant?"
Falroun scratched his head. "Um...well I guess I didn't ask, but if you would like to give it a name, we can call it that."
---
The baron bristled in offense at Thrym's words, "Excuse me! You would accuse me of wishing death upon my own son in law? Mortal peril? You can't be serious? What part of "not poisonous" was unclear to you! If he was poisoned, we would not be talking here. I would be rushing and doing all I could do save him. But he's not. Would you call me a monster for denying a crutch to an uninjured man?" He shook his head. His voice was not raised, but he was clearly frustrated. "If you insist on giving him the antitoxin, I will fetch it. But if someone is seizing on the ground from a scorpion bite and we've used up our antitoxin on this type of foolishness, you may find yourself reconsidering which one of us was thinking about the health and safety of the people on this expedition..."
The baron is not wrong that this breed of spider is not poisonous. Their bites hurt and will usually swell a bit, but they are no worse than a bee sting.
Fain wondered what kind of situation he has gotten himself in between. He thought he was here to help old Rudyham track a tiger then help Count Matsuda map an old temple site. This family tension was none of his business.
"You got an good eye Baron. I had ta get right up close to see i' had no poison sacs. Count, I swear to ya', ya' got no worries about poison here. That spiders' mostly harmless. Though surely there's SOME deadly spiders in Segang."
Fain left the spider where it was and headed back to his wee bed roll ... that he remembered to shake out before getting into.
Alenka gives the elephant an appraising look before saying, "I thought the mahout would have already named it," she takes a closer look, "Named him. But if not, his name will be Babar."
-----
Alenka agrees with the halfling's assessment. "Fain is correct, no poison. The Count will live without need of our aid. The pain you're feeling is like that of a bee sting. You'll have swelling and discomfort but it doesn't require antitoxin. The edema will recede but probably not until morning. The pain will serve as a reminder to check boots and bedrolls or anything that something poisonous can crawl into."
"It's good that this happened now. It reminds us that there are dangers we are unfamiliar with that lurk in the jungle and we will all need to be more vigilant. Better now than if poison truly was involved."
"See, Falroun. This is just a whole lot of fuss about nothing," the baron said, with his arms folded. He replied to Fain, "Actually you'd be surprised about spiders in the Segang. Last time I read up on the matter there were no discovered breeds of spider in the Segang jungle that contained deadly venom. It is pretty odd, since the jungle has plenty of venomous creatures. Possibly there could be undiscovered species, but they'd be deeper in the jungle." He pointed to the spider on the ground, "These one's are common though. They're all over the place."
Falroun, who seemed to have given up on his father in law, instead turned to the party. "Are you sure? Couldn't we just use the antitoxin to be safe?"
"Very diplomatic Thrym. Lo Falroun we have a animal expert," she points at Fain, "A experienced jungle traveler," she points to the baron, "a gifted alchemist," now to Alenka, "And magic!" she makes light flash on her hands, "Confirm a lack of poison in thine wounds. If you are archanophobic admit it." Luk-Luk spears the spider with a bolt. She holds it up to him, "I have seen and eaten spiders bigger than this. They lacked venom, but were hunters. You are a better hunter then this are you not? Why fear it? I will grill it. We will eat it to prove we are the better hunters, yes?!"
She holds up the spider towards Alenka, "Friend Alenka? Did you hope to disect this or may I roast? It would be nostalgic for me to eat roasted spider again. Even if the legs are vastly smaller."
Alenka regards the Count blandly, "Your father-in-law is correct in that we won't waste resources on a hypochondriac. All those with experience in this room have told you the spider is harmless. If you have your own antitoxin to waste then feel free to use it but I side with the Baron in declining giving you any of his stores."
When Luk Luk questions her about the spider, Alenka shakes her head. "If there was poison to extract then I would gladly dissect it. My days of cutting apart mundane insects and arachnids are far behind me. I have moved on to much more interesting and rewarding studies. Please, go ahead and roast it."
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Vard gave a start at the spider, before turning his attention to Falroun's bite.
"Blimey, he's a big one. And this is common, eh? Jungle must be good for spiders, even if the rest of us are sweating buckets! Hmm, he did take a fair bite out of you. I don't think it looks like poison, but I trust Alenka and Fain when it comes to poison and animals, and I reckon you should trust the Baron, who's been out here before."
"Looks like you got the best of the spider though, he won't be trying to use your boot as a bed again! And hey, first kill of the hunt!" Vard added with a grin. "He was pretty game though, sneaking into the tent like that! Although, if you take my advice, give up the boots altogether. You won't get surprised again, plus your feet'll breathe easier in the heat."
Fain thought to himself on the wisdom of his new friend Vard, he seemed to handle Falroun's situation better than he himself did. Fain also giggled on the way back to his bedroll, "Fain, the animal expert", the gardener said to himself with some pride. He found that on his second night he could sleep a bit easier and had a brief dream about spiders as big as elephants - which he had forgotten by morning. He got up early and took part of the last watch.
Falroun calmed down a bit, as he looked down at his foot. "Well, um...I suppose its not getting any worse."
"Well of course its not." Baron Rudyahm said gruffly. "Everyone should go to bed. We have an early start tomorrow and a big day of hunting." With little else to say, he turned away and returned to his tent. Seeming embarrassed, Falroun began picking his stuff up. "Well, I guess he's right...I guess I should get some rest."
---
The next morning arrives bright and early. "Well, let's get to hunting." The baron said to anyone who seemed interested in joining, before taking a position near the front of the group. Falroun, however, hung back and tried to get the party's attention, “I’d really like to impress the old man today, but you see, I’m not much of a hunter,” he admitted, “In fact, I’ve never really been hunting before! Is there any help or advice you can give me?”
"Verily, that spider was not filling" Luk-Luk was disappointed the Count hadn't taken part last night.
And Falroun wasn't even a hunter? Oh joy. Luk-Luk shook her head with a loud sigh saying,
The elf shook her head in the negative, "I was not a hunter in my tribe nor at Almas University." She looks between Thrym and Fain, "My friends however I am sure are more skilled at it then I am. Mayhaps they can aid you in learning to hunt."
"I have never hunted anything in a place like this," Thrym said, gesturing at the verdant forest and slapped at yet another insect that had decided a stomach-full of Thrym's blood was worth putting up with the repellent's stench.
"But the basics should stay the same: stay quiet, try to stay downwind of your prey. Take your time aiming when the time comes, and most importantly, keep calm. A large cat should be wary of someone your size, but if you run from it, it may quickly go from seeing you as a potential danger to considering you its next prey, and if you panic, you might also run away from the rest of us and the protection we can offer."
"Well thas a big question. Teach me how to hunt while standin on one foot. Thrym heres advice is good, I'll be takin some of it for myself. Don' panick.
I'd add, mimic the Baron but more. When he is quiet, you be quieter. When he is searching then you watch his back ... figuratively. When he is stalkin' you move like you're stalkin' him. Make i' a kinda game. If'n he's a good hunter then you aught to learn fast.
Above all, don' get killed and don' ruin his sport and you'll probably come out better for it."
Fain left much of the things he brought on pack animals to allow him to move softly. He moved out front, watching the tall grass for movement and strange bird behaviour - especially carrion birds feeding off of fresh kill. He watched the ground for scat - long undulating shapes covered in hair.
Count Matsunda may have been an inexperienced hunter, but he did prove to be an apt student. He listened carefully to Thrym and Fain's advice, asked good question and adjusted his approach any time suggestions were made. The morning started out strong for the baron, who proudly bagged a golden jackal. However, it was around midday that a real prize was spotted. With the party's help, Count Matsunda was able to track a set of paw prints to a remarkable white leopard prowling in the underbrush.
Fain moved quietly and cut to the right about twenty feet to set up a bit of a cross fire. He tried to spot the heart of the white leopard, guessed at it's movements and fired.
Luk-Luk is disappointed to not get to use magic but given her options there would be little left of the leopard. So she opts for her own crossbow. "So we are trying to surround it?" the question seemed aimed at Fain. As such, Luk-Luk had followed him but moved 5 feet further past Fain.
Luk Luk barely had a chance to ask her question before Fain's arrow flew forth and struck the creature in it's heart. It staggered forward a few feet before collapsing to the ground, breathing hard.
Hearing the thud, Baron Rudyham emerged from the jungle. He saw the leopard and was clearly impressed. "What a magnificent creature!" he exclaimed, as he examined the arrow in his chest. "...and such a clean shot! Which of you brought it down?"
Fain popped his head out of the tall grass and looked around feeling all eyes on himself. "Well, i'wasn't me really. The conditions were jus'ideal. I'm used to small game hunting to supplement my diet ... no'really a trophy hunter. I'm no'sayin it was a lucky shot, only that I'm a good shot when the wind is down an'there's no real cover is all.
Hey, I go' sticks to make a frame an we can look at cleanin the hide tonight. Are ya thinkin of a skin or do you want somethin posed."
Fain went over to the count. "The poor beast probably isn' dead. Grab the crossbow there and less put it to rest quickly." Fain intended to show Falroun how to perform a clean coup de grace with the important lesson of reducing suffering as much as possible.
"Well, i'wasn't me really. The conditions were jus'ideal. I'm used to small game hunting to supplement my diet ... no'really a trophy hunter. I'm no'sayin it was a lucky shot, only that I'm a good shot when the wind is down an'there's no real cover is all.
"Do not sell yourself short, Fain son of Grassbottom," Thrym chuckled, slapping the halfling on the back. "If ever there was a shot worth boasting about, that was it!" The shaman looked at the short hunter with newfound respect in his gaze.
Although not familiar with hunting himself, Vard did have experience with training others, so was able to assist the others in instructing the Count.
----
During the actual hunts, Vard armed himself with a javelin and followed the more experienced members, grinning as Fain's arrow shot true.
"Right you are Thrym. Twas a grand shot Fain," Luk-Luk joyfully adds as Fain leads Matsunda into confirming the kill. She had her own suggestion for the Count, "In the future Count Matsunda ye may wish to carry a club. My tribe did such. To conserve ammunition. Lo some beasts do play dead. If ammunition tis abundant shooting tis safer," the elf aims her crossbow back towards the jungle, having a basic understanding of such weapon safety.
"Well Count Matsunda, I believe this twas a grand example. Stealth, aim, shoot. Do ye wishing to forge ahead to find aught for you to shoot?" Luk-Luk understood the Count wished to prove himself but right now it was Fain that had proven himself. Not that the elf had any doubt her friend could hunt. They'd could let Matsunda take the first shot next time.
"It's nothing to be humble about, lad!" The baron said approvingly, "It was a fine shot."
"Yes, um. It was very well done!" Falroun, added, clearly trying to get rapport with his father in law. He accepts Fain's offer to learn how to finish the animal, though the act of killing did seem to make him a bit uneasy. Once done, they loaded up the cheetah and continued the hunt until sundown.
--
Eventually the hunting day was done and the group set up camp once more, in a clearing in the woods. The porters offered to skin and cook any game captured for the evening and morning meals, but otherwise the night passed without event. However, in the morning, the party found themselves awakened by clattering boxes and squeaking animal noises. Outside the tents, it seemed a band of monkeys had been attracted by the food and were now overturning containers, stealing trinkets and raiding unguarded food supplies. The porters seemed fully aware of this, but were regarding the monkeys reverentially, saying prayers and even offering them bits of food. Baron Rudyham, on the other hand was furious. He turned to the party and demanded, "Someone needs to do something about these damned monkeys before they ruin the camp!"
Fain looked at the Count's difficulty and made nothing of it. If the Count made to finish for the day then Fain said nothing then. If the Count looked to try to keep hunting, Fain did what he could to give Falroun the best chance for a good shot.
Luk-Luk decided to try her own hand at hunting.
Fortune had it that the elf found a bison munching upon some flowers. The beast didn't notice the elf as she took up aim. She made sure to aim well so as not to eat her own advice to the Count. Fortunately the bison didn't notice her presence until there was a bolt in its head.
The bison didn't go down from the first bolt though and thrashed about. A second bolt got its attention and Luk-Luk had to employ a old tactic known as legging it good and proper. After a minute of pursuit the bison collapsed and was finished off with a third bolt. Plus a fourth for good measure.
---
"That is a monkey?" Luk-Luk walked up to one banging pans before offering it a piece of cooked bison. She then loudly shouted something,
Luk-Luk tries to play with the monkeys and cheerfully tries to feed them as she finds the beasts quite cute. "Are these good pets? Do you think they'd like to watch fireworks? Can they be trained?"
Alenka follows behind the group as they begin their hunt. Her interest is in things once they were dead and not necessarily making them dead. Although her studies had taught her the most vulnerable parts of anatomy to target if need be as well as how to tell how close one was to death.
To add what help she could to the Count, she shared the placement of the most important arteries in an animal. "Should one of these arteries be severed, or even nicked, the animal will bleed out in a few short minutes."
She claps Fain on the back following his impressive shot, "Well done, Fain."
Before turning in for the night, Alenka offers her help to the porters for skinning the carcasses. In that way, she was also able to take a few samples for posterity. It was possible someone may want the eyes of a leopard or bison hair one day. There was no accounting for some people's tastes.
---
The next morning Alenka exits her tent to find out what the commotion is in the camp. She observes the monkeys with great interest, especially the use of their tails as somewhat of a third arm. "Fascinating. Their tails appear prehensile in nature. Similar to the elephant's trunk but their tails can actually support their weight."
"Someone needs to do something about these damned monkeys before they ruin the camp!"
"I think the locals consider monkeys divine or some such. They may believe we bring a deity's wrath on us if we do something about the monkeys. Whether true or not, the porters may leave."
Falroun carefully heeding Fain's advice and followed where he lead, especially after seeing his earlier takedown. With his help the two stumbled upon a magnificent sloth bear. It was not a one shot take down, but with help and guidance he was able to bring the slow creature down. The baron gave the creature an approvingly look. "Well done, Falroun. That was a good catch" Falroun smiled brightly at the praise, as the baron returned to his hunt, the count turned to Fain and mouthed, 'thank you'.
---
"What! Don't lure them in closer, silly girl!" Baron Rudyham scolded Luk Luk, as several monkey happily began dancing around the friendly elf. The baron reached for his musket and looked ready to fire, but hesitated when Alenka mentioned their status with the locals and the possibility of the porters leaving. He let out an exasperated sigh, "Well, we can't just let them run amok! They are destroying the camp and taking our supplies!"
Fain looked at the chaos the monkeys were reaping and with wide eyes looked at the team and shrugged his shoulders, "I don't know anything about no monkeys."
He looked about for lead monkey ...
"I'll lure them somewhere else then! They are just so adorable!"
It is doubtful that her attempts will succeed as the monkeys have a very clear play area now thanks to Luk-Luk. Not that she is trying too hard.
Vard rushed about trying to secure any bags the monkeys were getting into.
"Luring them away seems the best bet, if we dont want to scare them off."
" 'scuse me," he addressed the porters, "would you chaps mind feeding the monkeys away from the rest of the supplies? They might get into something dangerous and we don't wamt that."
The porters gave Vard a nod and, like Luk Luk, tried luring them away the camp. However it seemed that Luk Luk's earlier charm had worked a little too well. The creatures liked the camp and wanted to play with the elf right where they were.
The baron's frustration only grew. "If someone doesn't clear them out soon, I will be decorating my hall with monkeys and will still have plenty left over for tonight's stew!"
Luring the creatures away () probably is the best bet and Vard is definitely helping by convincing the porters to not feed them here. It just seems that right now Luk Luk and the porters aren't doing such swaying the animals.
So, these were the rumored monkeys... quite a letdown after the horrible visage of the elephant - Thrym was still keeping one eye on the eldritch beast just in case it was slipping free from its bindings. But these little long-armed furred pests... he could not figure out why some local tribes would have venerated them. And while he recalled Fain's words from before they had set sail, how the creatures were alike enough to men to be seen as mirrors of humanity... he just couldn't see it. Surely, to be chosen as holy animal, the animal needed to be... more. Bigger. Fiercer. More awe-inspiring.
Quite unlike these mewling little horrors. the shaman thought as he idly kicked away one specimen that tried to tug free a dagger from his belt. Perhaps the monkeys were like ravens in that way - drawn to anything that gleamed and glittered.
He was of a mind to find out how a monkey tasted, but the way the local porters were gifting the things with food suggested they might take any such attempt badly. Instead, Thrym took a silver coin from a pocket, whistled to catch the creatures' attention, then threw the shiny bauble as far into the jungle as he could. "Catch!"
Fain looked about at a complete loss as what to do.
"No no no monkeys, away from the, aww you are so cute!" The sorceress is having difficulty. She still tries to lure them off so the Baron doesn't shoot them.
"Look look, more shinies! Come one, play over here so the angry man does not blast you." Luk-Luk tosses a few silver as well and a few utensils after Thrym's throw. Her's gets much less distance.
Alenka observed the whole chaotic scene with some bemusement. "The only thing to do is lure the monkeys away. But you all need to try harder. You're sending them mixed messages by feeding and playing with them here and as long as that happens, they won't leave."
Fain took out his journal and made some descriptive notes on the monkeys' behaviour and on the porters' reverence adding: It seems that Luk Luk's natural charisma and open way with the creatures seemed to move them. It is, however, in Thrym's unpretentious manner in which he clearly doesn't seek to ingratiate himself that the beasts seem to have found their 'king monkey.'
At first, things still seemed chaotic. However, slowly Thrym's approach started to work. A monkey or two would run after the shiny item, and with Luk Luk's help they followed the items away from the camp, where they continued to play. The porters immediately began picking up items and putting them away, as if nothing had happened. Baron Rudyahm was still fuming, but at least satisfied that the mischievous creatures had left. Once all thrown items were found and the camp was packed, another day of hiking began.
The trail was calm for most of the morning, with some successful hunting. However, in the afternoon. Something went wrong. Babar started rearing and panicking, as if something was wrong. Not short after, one of the porters let out a yelp. It appeared there were snakes in the grass and a big one had just bitten one of the porters.
If Luk-Luk is able to get a good angle, she will try to burn the snakes without hitting anyone. If not she will try for just the largest snake.
Fain yanked his kukri out and ran to where the closest snake was - he aimed for just beneath the head ...
'Spirits below, it is struggling to break free!' Thrym thought as the tentacle-faced beast began screaming and stomping the ground. Had something happened to the binder? But then he saw movement among the underbrush, heard one of the porters cry out and clutch his leg in pain and horror. Snakes.
'So... it's not breaking its chains... was it trying to warn us instead?' the shaman mused as he readied his weapons, giving the frantic demon plenty of room as he headed for the snakes. Well, no matter the motivation that had spurred the otherworldly beast into action - they had to deal with the snakes before more of them got bit - for if the spiders hadn't been a cause for worry despite their gigantic size, perhaps these snakes were of a more deadly variety.
As the elephant reared up, Vard jumped to alertness, looking for the threat. He leapt forward into the fray as he saw the serpents, drawing his warhammer and catching a glancing blow off the largest one.
-7
Luk Luk's flames shot out, scorching the two smaller snakes. The porters held up their hand to fend of the heat, as the tiny creatures were turned to char and stopped moving. This only seemed to anger the larger snake, as it slithered out of the way of Thrym's axe and began to uncoil and rise to easily four times the size of both halflings. Despite this, both Vard and Fain were able slash at the creature before it leapt forward and sunk its fangs deep into Fain's torso.