Sprig dives for cover. "Woah! What in blazes was that?!"
"Whoa whoa whoa!"
He called out spreading out slightly from Saraon to make sure they werent both taken out in the same strike. He strained to see the culprit while trying to hold his bardiche in a position that made it look less like they were here to murder whomever through the boulder.
"Most likely a giant of some kind...that would also explain the missing tree," Saraon says to Sprig.
Saraon and Bas both see in the distance a crude hut fashioned from scrap metal and a large boulder. Standing outside it is a massive humanoid, dressed in filthy rags and hides. She holds a boulder under one arm, scanning the horizon for where the party may have gone.
"Yes, definitely a giant, hill by the looks of her, and probably not too keen on visitors," Saraon confirms.
Another rock flies at the party, missing them again as a distant bellow can be heard and in booming, heavily accented Common,
"Whoa there miss Ugra. We don't mean any disrespect. We just happened to be moseying through and saw the tree tracks and wondered what was up with them."
He called back trying to well keep the giant's focus his direction and away from the others.
"A MERRY MEETING, UGRA!" Saraon calls back to her. "AS MY FRIEND SAYS, WE MEAN YOU AND YOUR HOME NO HARM!"
Ugra lowers her rock as she bellows,
"Giants be dense right?" Katheryn asked with a slight smirk.
Ugra completely sets down her rock as she lumbers over. Her tone is no louder as she gets closer to the party, and the booming voice combined with a horrendous stench surrounding her is a potent combination. She says in a thundering reply,
"We be lookin' for something left in a tree hallow. But the tree be missin' might ya know where 'bout the tree went?" Katheryn asked.
"We don't even need the tree itself," Saraon adds. "Just what was inside it."
I'm not sure I trust this giant. That boulder came way too close for comfort. Sprig nodded agreeably. "Jes' takin' what's ours 'n we'll be on our way."
Ugra unslings a massive club from her back and hefts it around some, showing it off to the party, She lets out a rumbling little chuckle made all the more menacing by how massive she is.
"That's fair," Saraon replies. "Doing things for others is what we do best!"
He glanced at the others and merely rolled his eyes. He wasnt surprised at all, still it was probably better than being on the other end of that club.
Katheryn looks to the others for a moment. "We just need what is inside right?" She asked, ensuring she was correct.
Ugra starts talking, her booming voice growing angrier and angrier as she explains the situation,
"Ugra, were the metal men made out of metal or did they look like they were meat men wearing metal clothes?" Saraon asks. Either they were dealing with robots or people in armor, and they'd have to be approached very differently depending on the answer.
"Good to know. We got a deal, Sprig?" Saraon asks.
Sprig nodded, "Can't say Ah've been too fonda metal men myself. Ah suppose yew got a deal"
The parts sets out following the instructions that Ugra (very loudly) gives them. It's about a half hours walk until they reach an oasis in the near distance. It's a small, surprisingly clean and clear thing, some traces of greenery and a single tree having sprouted up around it. Four humanoid forms wander aimlessly around it. From a distance, they could almost be human if not for their jerky, erratic movements and bizarre, fragmented speech. Exact words are indiscernible at this distance.
"I can see why this would be Ugra's favorite watering hole...nature is steadily but surely healing here," Saraon says with a smile in his voice. "Seeing the 'metal men' for ourselves, I'm fairly certain now that they're automatons of some sort. Do we approach peacefully or stealthily?"
"It truly be somethin' to see." Katheryn said, a soft smile gracing the gunwoman's lips. "'Minds me of... Well of Olok..." She added, a chuckle following.
"Auto wats?" Katheryn asked Saraon with a raised brow.
Sprig squinted in the harsh sun, not quite sure what he was seeing. "Not really sure what Ah'm lookin' at. Ah don't really trust 'em, but we gotta find out how t' get rid of them. Y'all wanna sneak up a lil' closer n' see what's goin' on?"
The kobold ensures his pistol is loaded as he talks.
"I can get a mite bit closer i think."
He said quietly, frowning and studying the terrain to the erratic moving creatures. After a moment of studying he moved forward as quietly and cautiously as he could.
"It truly be somethin' to see." Katheryn said, a soft smile gracing the gunwoman's lips. "'Minds me of... Well of Olok..." She added, a chuckle following.
"Auto wats?" Katheryn asked Saraon with a raised brow.
"Robots," Saraon replies, hoping that word was more familiar to Katheryn.
The last few days have been a blur. You were making your way towards a nearby town when a group of metal men surrounded you, spouting garbled speech about detaining an abhuman and taking you to a facility. It was a hot, thirsty few days as they marched you along through the desert, stopping at what might've been checkpoints long before the gods fell to earth. They've laid you by an oasis for the last few hours, and you've been able to scooch closer for a drink. As you lie by the oasis, pondering your predicament, the metal men get all in a tizzy and charge away from the oasis. Rescue may have arrived.
As Bas creeps closer he notices a humanoid figure, tightly tied up on the edge of the oasis. The robot's garbled speech becomes clearer too, "Abhuman...krzzzhk...detained for...kzzrshk...en route to...dzzzrt...facility, civilians...bzzzt...unauthorized."
Unfortunately for Bas, one of the robots spots him and screeches, "Alert! Alert! Alert! Lethal force...gzzrgt...authorized!"
The robots, however, are quite slow, and the whole party gets the jump on them.
"Blast it, I've got the ones to the north!"
He hollared to his friends and boss charging to the closet bot to the north. As he moved he pulled the Bardiche back getting all the force momentum and weight he could behind the swing.
Saraon nods.
"I'll take the western ones. At least this makes the scenario an easy one."
He dashes in that direction.
"I'mma give us cover!" Katheryn shouted as she ran foreword before lowering her rifle and lined up a shot.
Seeing the robots move jerkily away in haste, Godric works to reposition himself to get a better view of what may be going on in the distance. 'If it's got those metal men rattled, hopefully its a good sign! Still, be cautious, let you walk out of the frying pan and into the fire...'
As he shuffles, he attempts to break the bounds tied around his wrists.
Seeing things break out into combat, Sprig begins to summon a creature to help.
Godric's rescuers seemingly come from out of nowhere, but by the gods do they come in strong. A gunshot rings out from a rifle-wielding woman behind the wanderer, the bullet taking a chunk out of one of the robots, followed by a man in a dragon mask dashing past wielding an elegant curved sword. The burned, scarred man hollering as he crashes into one of the automatons like a poleaxe wielding boulder is also hard to miss. Spellcasting can be heard behind the attackers, but the source is hard to find in Godric's current predicament. His attempt to escape is valorant but ultimately unsufficient, however.
The party, as they advance against the robots, see a prisoner on the side of the oasis, tightly bound with metallic cord.
The ancient metal men stagger across the dunes. Two lurch towards Saraon, though their decrepit legs can only carry them so quickly. The other two move in on Bas, ancient metal sabers at the ready. The burned warrior is too fast for them, however, and he dodges both of their attacks.
Seeing his would-be rescuers coming from every direction, and them being a haphazard mix of individuals, Godric takes heart in his chances at the moment. He taps into a touch of the divine providence that blesses his existence and tries again to escape his bonds.
"Uh Damn these things can take a hit!"
He called out only a small amount of worry in his voice. He let out a large grunt as he once more hefted the bardiche and brought it down hard at the robot he struck the first time.
Katheryn took aim once more. "Let's see if you take this!" Katheryn stated before she pulled the trigger.
With a quick flip and a blur of movement, Katheryn lined up another shot.
Saraon strides up to the robot approaching him and takes a swing at it!
Sprig finishes his chant and calls forth a rocky earthen creature. It collects itself and lashes out at the nearest robot.
Despite the lack success from his earthen servant, Sprig rushes in after it, flinging a globule of acid at the threatening machine.
Godric strains and struggles against the metal cables and just as he feels like they'll never budge, the latch holding them closed busts open!
Bas hits hard, though the robot's iron-hard exterior stymies the worst of his attack. In the process though, his bardiche crashes into the robot's legs, incapacitating it. Sprig's blob of acid hits home but it too is foiled by the metal man's inherent defenses.
Katheryn and Saraon are an effective duo, too, and Saraon chops the robot's sword hand clean off.
None of the robots attacks hit home, though one strides straight towards Godric, sword at the ready.
Green -20
Orange -10
Blue
Red
His bindings broken, Godric unsheaths his heavy sword free as he charges the approaching iron-man.
Katheryn reloaded once more before she noticed a man off to her left. "We hav' more company! Be lookin' like he got out." Katheryn shouted to everyone then noticed him draw and blade and attack. "Well, might be a help."
With that she took aim and fired.