Lem looks toward the innkeeper and says, "If they haven't cleared out by the time they sober up, let me know. What can you tell us about the task they were hired for?"
"Thurl, in a better world, you would have swayed them, but we have your back since this is the world we're stuck with."
Arbaro starts looking over the loot left behind and kicking any dragon hunters still left to sober them up and get them going on their way.
Brag finds the most coherent of the remaining dragon hunters and questions them about why they aren't doing their job.
The few remaining dragon hunters are of little help, but one particularly stout dwarf is speaking freely.
"Why would we?" he says, slurring his words. He breath reeks. "The only monsters not on some foggy islands are manticores, which, I'm glad to inform you, are not dragons. We saw some wyverns out on the islands, but we can't swim, ha ha. It's in our contract. No boats."
He sways over the table, almost falling over, his eyes droopy. You think he's fallen asleep but he rapidly sits up straight and points a finger at you before saying, "Not to mention, don't forget, no one told me to forget, that we bagged a beauty on our way in. Some injured mythical beast that will fetch us a pretty platinum in the black market. Oh yes. Some six-legged celestial creature. Didn't catch the name, just that the words 'thousands' and 'platinum.' We've got that beast tied up out of town over the rise back north."
Then the dwarf truly and fully faints, his face hitting the floor first.
Brag looks around at the others. Not seeing anyone else who might offer any information, he says, "Friends, let's go and see what this dwarf is talking about."
Arbaro follows Brag.
A half mile outside of Chimera Cover, on the far side of a short hill, lies the rest of the dragon hunters' encampment. Rows of wagons and tents are set up, a few dozen horses milling about and eating in a make-shift fence made of local woods. The dust from the road and the movement of the recently kicked out hunters still floats in the air. There are various barrels and boxes of supplies for such a large contingent of warriors, but none so big as a wide tent at the far side of the camp. The canvas is hastily patched together from various smaller tents, and there stands three guards outside the tied-off tent flaps. Two short but muscular men twirling axes and a third dressed in finely oiled studded leather, dual kukris sheathed at her sides and a longbow within reach. She spits out a wad of chew and says, "You're tresspassing. Get out."
Arbaro approaches the tent.
"You are right about one thing, you should get out. We were sent here to get that thing. If you will not give it to us, we will take it by force."
The guard is unwilling to deal in diplomacy. But she is willing to deal in steel.
Round 1
Bragoleb and Arbaro are the first to react to the monk/inquisitor's failed diplomacy, their bowstrings already notched and shafts nimbly grasped between their fingers.
Round 1 | HP 52/52 | AC 19 | Lay on Hands 7/7 | Smite Evil 3/3 | Arrows 51/54 | Spells: 1st - 2/2; 2nd - 2/2
Brag's love of animals makes him aware that a special beast is being mistreated. He will seek to release the creature by destroying those who seek to profit from it's imprisonment. He aims the hunter and rapidly releases three streaking arrows at her. All this while detecting evil.
Adamantine +3 Longbow Point-Blank (+1), Rapid-Shot (-2), Deadly Aim (-2, +4 Damage) Attack
Round 1 | HP: 71/71 | Judgements 2/2 | Spells 1: 6/6 2: 3/3 | Perfect Strike 3/4 | Gravity Bow Wand charges 21 | True Strike 1/1 | Blood Scarab 1/1
Arbaro decides that the other two are not worth noting and goes for the speaker.
"Ah, you have chosen aggressive negotiations. Thank you. They tend to work out in our favor more often than our diplomatic solutions anyway."
Perect Stike:
Thurl observes the spittle coming from her mouth with distaste and is about to speak, when Arbaro pipes up. Thurl lets him talk, and then whirls about when she refuses diplomacy.
Brag hits twice, but does not smite. 71/96 hp
Arbaro hits twice via magic. 45/96
The hunter draws her kukris and slices at the nearest party members
Round 1
Round 1 | HP 32/48 | Advice 14/18 | Awaken Divinity 6/7 | Ki Pool 6/10 | Bardic Performance 8/9
AC: 25 FF: 18 T: 24 CMD: 29 Ki dodge active
Thurl focuses his Ki into his body, speeding his reflexes in preparation for another onslaught from the hunter and says, "Deal with her quickly friends!" Thurl then throws a punch at the swift woman but just hits her armor.
Round 1
Both poachers drink a potion of Bull's Strength and then draw their dual axes, closing to melee.
Round 2, 45/96 HP, AC 25
Arbaro and Brag are up.
Then the hunter.
Then Thurl and Lem.
Then the poachers. AC 14, hp 30
Round 2 | HP 52/52 | AC 19 | Lay on Hands 7/7 | Smite Evil 3/3 | Arrows 48/54 | Spells: 1st - 2/2; 2nd - 2/2
Brag seeing the poachers drinking a potion, fires one arrow at each of the three unfriendlies: hunter, poacher 1, and poacher 2.
"Pound 'em flat, Lem!
Adamantine +3 Longbow Point-Blank (+1), Rapid-Shot (-2), Deadly Aim (-2, +4 Damage), Thurl Enhanced +2 Attack
Round 2 | HP: 71/71 | Judgements 2/2 | Spells 1: 6/6 2: 3/3 | Perfect Strike 2/4 | Gravity Bow Wand charges 21 | True Strike 1/1 | Blood Scarab 1/1
Arbaro continues to focus his attention on the biggest threat and plugs two more arrows into her.
"Great shot Brag! Lem, bring her down!"
PS:
Round 2
The hunter drops her kukris and raises her hands. "I don't get paid enough for this."
The two poachers behind her turn tail and run, seeing their strong ally routed.
You find their small chest of possessions:
potions of cure serious wounds (2), smokesticks (2), tanglefoot bags (2), +2 studded leather, +1 kukris (2), masterwork composite longbow (+4 Str) with 20 arrows, amulet of natural armor +1, belt of giant strength +2, cloak of resistance +1, ring of protection +1, 793 gp, masterwork studded leather, masterwork handaxes (3), masterwork heavy crossbow with 20 bolts.
They left in too much of a hurry to gather their things.
Inside the tent, you see a most majestic sight: the pegasus of Bellerophon. Appearing like a six-legged, jet-black horse dappled with white spots, its coat looking like flecks of seafoam sprayed against a starless night sky. Two wings emerge from the withers her ebon pinion tied and clasped behind the horses massive back. The horse is muzzled and her snorting can be felt through the soil beneath your soles. She is tied with a dozen ropes and leather straps, a ten foot deep pit dug into the earth, the ropes staked under the canvas of the tent. As you step into the tent you see that the pegasus is not merely a winged horse, but a massive creature. She stands at least 27 hands high, and has six strong legs stomping the ground beneath her.
"Whoa, there big fella. Let us cut you loose from the ropes. Be calm, we're here to release you."
To shadow, "Shadow, heel. Show this magnificent specimen that we can be trusted."
"I should know something about this six-legged horse, but I can't recall it."
If the pegasus will allow Brag and the others to cut his bonds, we will do so, and quickly.
Thurl says to Bragoleb, ”Her name is Umbracopy, and she likes sweet fruit. Try that.”
Brag pulls out an apple from his pack and offers it to Umbracopy.
"Hey, Shadow, your name and the pegasus's name have the same meaning. Both mean "shadow!""
The pegasus is wary of you. It looks down at you from its great height with a cautious eye. But as you loosen her bonds and feed her, she nods her head in acceptance. With a few strong beatings of her wings, she blows the tent cover away and shakes her black feathers out in the sunlight. With a flick of her mane, she motions to a leather contraption on the back of a wooden frame.
[spoiler=Handle Animal or Know Local DC 14]It is a huge-sized howdah, often used to carry passengers on the backs of an elephant. This one has been fitted to a pegasus.[spoiler]
Umbracopy eats the apple and spits out the core. You think you see her shrug her shoulders as if to say the apple was acceptable, but there are better fruits out there.
Lem takes a look at the +2 studded leather, "I hate to give up my heirloom, I might have to take it home for posterity, but I think I could get some use out of that armor if no one else wants it."
Lem looks at Umbracopy and walks closer slowly speaking nonsense quiet and calm.
Arbaro attempts to assists Lem with his animal handling.
Brag attempts and fails to understand Umbracopy's motioning to the contraption.
"Thurl, Umbracopy is motioning to that thing. Any idea what it is?"
Umbracopy nuzzles Lem approvingly, nipping him (a little hard) on the shoulder. Her mouth is big enough to almost fit all of Lem.
She shakes her wings out and turns in a circle in the pit before kneeling on her front four legs, the knees on one side sticking out at waist level.
Lem takes the nips with the intent given and laughs, ”this is a friendly looking one. I think he (she) might take us somewhere. Looks like that thing on his back might be used to carry people.”
Arbaro attaches the saddle and motions for Lem to mount.
"We do have some island hopping to do to rid the area of evil. This might just work out for us."
Lem ascends to mount.
"Agreed Brag, where will you take us you fine creature," Lem says with a pat on the animal's side.
Mounting Umbracopy is easy, with the six-legged pegasus's help. You feel as if the earth itself is rolling beneath you as she spreads her wings and rises out of the pit. She does not fly far, however, before setting down in an empty grass field and turning her head back at you, mane whipping in the wind, as if to ask, "Where to?"
You have the three islands and the open plains left to check out.
Looking at his four companions, Brag says, "Friends, we have three islands to visit. They are the islands of the Goat, the Lion, and the Dragon. I vote for Dragon first, but we may need extra preparations before we attempt to clear out any monsters or find the golden rope or cloak of the lion."
"Brag, I think we can go take a look and then if we need to regroup, we can fly back without any issues. Otherwise, we can just jump right in."
Arbaro mounts and shouts.
"To the Dragon Island!"
"Ah, lets scout before deciding what to do. Dragon sounds like a good starting point. We should probably pick up some feed in town relatively soon as well."
The town of Chimera Cove quickly shrinks beneath your eyes as you fly into the air, the people and buildings looking like homes for halflings, then pixies, then spiders before Umbracopy soars out over the coastline and toward the three islands. From your height, as the wind blows from inland, you can see the plains stretching inland, long coastline east and west along Andoran's shores, and before you three stubs of rock that must be the three islands sticking out of Chimera Cove. As you near your approach, however, the wind stops blowing and the billowing fog settles back in, obscuring your vision again.
The three islands are devoid of vegetation, save for a scraggly brush and seagrass clinging to what soil there is on the rocky islands. You hear no seabirds calling, the waves are quiet beneath you, and even the wind in your ears is muffled by the fog.
The Dragon is the largest of the three islands, with tall crags and sheer cliffs. The Dragon is only around a third of a mile long. To the east (your left) is the Lion, the flattest of the three islands; the far eastern end is dominated by a boulder shaped like a lion's mane, and you can see several smaller boulders on the rocky shoreline. Smallest is the Goat, set slightly further away from the other two, with thick but short tufts of seagrass sticking out along the wavy silhouette of the island. You hear a faint bleating through the wind coming from the western Goat.
"It is strange that we don't hear any birds here. It is too quiet."
"I don't think it's the fog. I'm guessing the birds have been frightened away, or, worse eaten by some hungry predator."
"Keep alert then," Lem looks around.
"If you're set on dragon that's ok with me, I may not be very much use if there is an actual dragon there though. The last drake kept moving around."
Umbracopy sets her landing down on the least rocky shore of the Dragon, her six legs clattering against the stones as she slows herself down. Unlike a bird, she cannot perch and lift off standing still, but must work up to (or work down from) a good speed before taking off.
The rocky cliffs of the Dragon rise above you about 100 feet.
Brag remembers his Goz mask and slips it on knowing that he can now see through the fog. With improved sight, he considers his surroundings.
"We should walk around the island. We'll find an easier way up on the other side. Or we could just have Umbracopy fly us up."
"The way the wind is blowing, I can tell that something is rotting from over there," he says pointing, "on the far side of the cliff."
Umbracopy snorts at Brag's words. She gallops back and forth on the sand, trying to work up speed to lift off, as if to show that this is the only place she's willing to land.
"Looks like we're going have to go on foot, friends. Umbracopy seems to be telling us that there's not enough room to land or take off anywhere else on Dragon island."
"Yes, and it looks like there is some sort of large flying beast about here somewhere. See the spore and the pickings down among the rocks below those cliffs? We should keep our eyes on the skies as well as the cliffs. Which item do you think we will find here?"
"I've got a boarding axe and rope but I don't think they'll help enough to get us up that cliff. I say we go around. Lead the way Lem. Keep your weapons ready, I don't want to be caught out here, we're too exposed."
Arbaro keeps his head on a swivel, bow drawn.
As we walk away, Arbaro test out his new boots and leaves some mushrooms for Umbracopy to eat.
" 'Brah, do you eat mushrooms? I thought we'd leave you a snack until we get back."
Brag leaves the Goz mask on and throws the hood of his stealth cloak over his head and follows behind Thurl and Roccavisk around the island.
Brag is nearly invisible and has his bow ready for dragons and other beasts.
"Let's go. This shouldn't take long, Umbracopy."
Lem leads the way charging onward beating back any brush along the path, unless someone requests otherwise. "I'm ready, lets see what the path holds.
Around the curve of the shore you march through loose rocks. The beach stones are rounded but still uncomfortable under your new boots.
As you reach the western point of the island and turn back east, you see the cliffs are much easier to climb on this side. The cold, misty wind blowing off the ocean hits you stronger in the face. You're chilled and grit your teeth against the strong biting wind.
Up the slope of the cliff you see a more of the stony cliff rising to a peak. There are no signs of any humanoid presence on the upper part of the island, but you see more bones and spoor of something large and reptilian. Near the shoreline, however, you see flotsam and jetsam washed up on shore; timber, spars, rotted rope, cracked tackles, and the like.
While Brag's owl-like quietness, Thurl's acquaintance with the territory of predators, and Arbaro's keen eyes keep all three of them on their toes, Lem hacks through the segrasses unawares and is surprised by two wyverns, reptile-like dragons that claw out of a crevice in the rocks looking angry and territorial.
Round Surprise, AC 19, HP 73
The wyverns are 25 feet away and on the ground.
Round # | HP 52/52 | AC 19 | Lay on Hands 7/7 | Smite Evil 2/3 | Arrows 48 | Spells: 1st - 2/2; 2nd - 2/2
Brag let's fly an arrow attack at the wyvern nearest to Lem.
Adamantine +3 Longbow Point Blank (+1), Rapid Shot (-2), Wind (-2) Attack
All three arrows pin-cushion the wyvern.