Crow looked at the plants for more of the poison stuff from before. It would make sense if it was the same plant killing off the animals.
"So now what? I don't know of any way to purify the poison out of the water," says Laurelin. "And we don't have enough water to keep this mekillot alive so that we could ride it further. Besides which, one mekillot will only carry one half-giant."
Cale also looks for elfroot. Having water sources only he could drink from was handy. "worst case scenario the live one would be good meat"
The mekillot huffs and looks to the south. There seems to be a dust cloud approaching.
Crow's brow crinkled slowly. "Elfroot in the water. No Elfroot on the shore. Deliberate?" He glanced to the South when he saw the great beast doing so, but wasn't concerned. No one had told him to worry about that yet, after all.
"That's a good observation, Crow," says Laurelin. "But we don't know how long it takes for it to work its way out of the water, so we probably can't just stick around and wait for it to be safe to drink. If someone's poisoning it deliberately, though, maybe they have to come back to add more poison on a schedule?"
Ick asks, "Ambush, parley, or flee? One of us could talk while the other lay in wait."
"I agree with the combined option - those of us who can, hide in the reeds, while someone talks to the incoming group," says Laurelin.
Crow assumed there wasn't much point in him attempting to hide, and went to stand with whoever did the talking. He'd add weight and a giant sword to there arguments, and likely keep people from looking too hard at the reeds.
For some reason Ick couldn't find a place to conceal her 7" tall and 7" wide bulk among the plants by the shore of the poisonous oasis. Instead she changed her coloring to match the background.
The dust cloud to the south is being created by a train of what looks like a dozen elves and half as many green-scaled kanks, each of them loaded with cloth bags. The elves are wearing barely enough cloth to preserve their modesty, with a coating of thin grey paint smeared across their eyes. They're laughing and talking amongst themselves as they approach the oasis at a run.
They stop when they see the massive bulk of Crow and the mekillot nearby before they see the others. "New mouths come to water at the oasis, hmm?" The leader says, stepping forward. His hair is shaved closely to his head. "Well, don't mind us. Just coming by to get our fair share."
A couple of elves run to their kanks and root around in the bags they carry, producing handfuls of something violet.
Crow looked at the purple stuff they were pulling out the bags. If it was more Elfroot he would have to...suggest otherwise. It was smart, for the elves, to taint the water so only there kind would be able to drink. But it didn't help Crow.
Laurelin scans the elves and then, with a chilling stare, reaches out with her mind to try to make telepathic contact with one of the bag-carriers.
Khar stands warily. The idea of hiding did not come naturally to the former gladiator and the lack of good cover left him with few options anyway.
"I am Khar." The mul glances at the elves running to their bags but turns to look the speaker in the eye. "What are your people doing?"
He's easy prey.
"Oh, nothing much. Just a little favour for the druid of this precious water." The leader smiles and beckons his two bag-carriers forward. "He asked us to keep the waters of this oasis pure for all travellers."
"They do not appear to be very pure now," Khar says looking at the fallen mekillot. "What exactly are your people carrying?"
Continuing her focus, Laurelin directs her attention to the man with the bag.
"What's in the bag and what is it used for?" she asks.
At the same time, her powerful will snakes its way into the elf's mind, trying to subvert it, to force him to answer her.
"What exactly are your people carrying?"
"Why, a rare herb fetched from the furthest reaches of the fields of Balic, renowned among herbalists for its restorative properties--" The leader starts.
Your Will practically swallows his mind whole, shackling him like an animal. You've seen wezers and wasps with more mental fortitude than him.
"It's methelinoc." One of the bag-carriers abruptly stops and says, his once vibrant green eyes turning glassy and unfocused. "A powerful poison of the Jura-Dai. A means of revenge against Urik and Kled."
The leader's eyes widen and the colour drains from his face. "Kirr? Kirr, my boy, don't be so ridiculous! You've been out in the sun too long, haven't you?"
"What is Kled? Why do you seek revenge?"
"Kled helped Urik find us. Their slave-takers took many Jura-Dai."
Ick had heard enough from the elves and she had decided to kill them. She focused her mental energy into her body enhancing her strength.
"So you would poison anyone, even innocent people and animals in your quest for revenge? That seems reckless and unnecessary. How would you be sure you affected your enemies even a little? And to deny everyone the water just because of your pride?" Khar truly did not understand. The plan sounded too risky. In his mind he quickly began to consider their options for engaging in violence.
Laurelin says, loudly enough for all to hear, "On the contrary, he is the only one who speaks the truth - though it is because he does have a weak mind."
She tilts her head slightly and the dominated elf dumps out his bag of toxic powder onto the dirt away from the water.
Cale frowns, the actions of these elves were cruel and senseless. he pittied them "stop this madness."is all he can think to say.
Ick leaps from the shore to the crowd of elves and tries to tear them apart with mandible and claw. She's careful to avoid the elf who seems to be complying. She drops her camouflage.
The leader is about to reply to Khar's questions when a thri-kreen claw brutally tears his throat out in a gout of blood. He collapses instantly, and Ick-tk-chk-ka begins ripping through the other gathered elves before they can react.
One claw to the chest--down.
One claw to the thigh--the elf stumbles away, barely escaping her.
Another claw to the skull--and the head comes off.
Finally, a vicious bite--the elf's ribs give way under her jaws with a mighty CRACK!
Five vicious attacks. Four dead elves.
The remaining elves (save for the dominated one) let out a collective scream of terror.
"MANTIS-WARRIOR!"
"IT'S ESCAPED!"
"RUN! RUN FOR YOUR LIVES!"
"CORAANU HELP US ALL!"
They then start running like mad for the desert dunes. The kanks remain, looking rather nonplussed.
Khar snaps into a defensive posture to ready for the assault. When the elves turn to flee he is somewhat confused. "What are they doing? Is this some sort of ruse?"
"They're fleeing to tell the rest of their tribe what happened," says Laurelin through gritted teeth. She gestures and the dominated elf finds himself kneeling down, hands behind his back. "Would someone please tie this one up? It is exhausting to keep control of his mind. A leather thong around his wrists and another around his ankles should suffice."
Crow grunted and tied the Elf up. He doubted he could catch the fleeing ones.
Ick runs after the elves.
Cale regretfully launches his magic missile at one of the fleeing elves, trying to knock him over with the small wave of force
The thri-kreen catches up with the other elves and proceeds to lay them to waste in a flurry of claws and bites. The only survivor of the attack doesn't last long after that--a blast of force catches him in the back and lays him low.
The only one remaining is the dominated elf, his eyes still blank.
"It looks like their gambit failed. Our liberators seek revenge against a sorcerer-king. Ick probably granted them more mercy than their tribe mates are likely to see. What do we do with him?" Khar finds the image of someone else bound odd. Part of him feels compelled to bring the elf into their new...tribe? What do you call a band like ours?
"What is a band like ours called?" Khar asks suddenly without context.
"Toss him in the pool. Taint it so nothing can drink." Normally it would be hideous to taint water, but this lot had done so already. Finding this one drowned in it should give them a hint that no one else liked this.
"We should at least ask him to tell us for certain whether it was elfroot" Cale says with a sigh
Khar shrugs with Crow's suggestion of executing the prisoner. He does not really care either way. "The elf certainly is not innocent in this, but does he have value to us alive? Or just a liability since it is someone else who needs food and water. You have been in his mind, Laurelin, what do you think?"
"They mentioned something about a guardian? A druid? Whatever that is. Is that a real thing? Could one return this water to a cleaner state?"
"I haven't probed his memories, simply taken control of his actions," explains Laurelin. "I forced him to tell the truth, but I can't maintain a hold long enough to get him to tell a litany of everything, nor do I have the skills to dive into his memories for information. Bind him up and I'll release my hold on him - it's a powerful exertion of Will to keep a mind under bondage like this."
Laurelin finally releases her mental hold upon the elf.
Assuming that he'll struggle a bit, she says to the now-mentally-uncontrolled prisoner, "Just to get it out of the way: Yes, your friends ran and left you. No, we aren't necessarily going to kill you out of hand - how we treat you depends upon you. And no, I don't feel particularly bad about invading your mind, considering that you were poisoning an oasis."
As soon as Laurelin withdraws from the elf's mind, his eyes widen and he starts thrashing about in the sands, straining against the leather bindings holding his hands and legs.
"Just to get it out of the way: Yes, your friends ran and left you. No, we aren't necessarily going to kill you out of hand - how we treat you depends upon you. And no, I don't feel particularly bad about invading your mind, considering that you were poisoning an oasis."
The elf looks up at Laurelin, his green eyes filled with fear. "It's not my fault! I was just doing as I was told!"
"Yes, you seem to be good at that. You are part of the Jura-Dai tribe, are you not? Your tribe seems to have a dispute with other people traveling through the area... even people who had never met you before, like us. Poisoning an oasis so that it kills all travelers coming through is... not a great tactic for winning friends. Perhaps the folk of Kled would reward us for turning you over to them, hmm?"
Laurelin hunkers down in the dirt, far enough away to avoid a desperate lunge, and says, "Let's hope it doesn't come to that, shall we... Kirr, was it?"
"I wonder, was this oasis once under the stewardship of a druid? If so, what happened to him or her? A druid wouldn't simply let you poison the waters."
Kirr flinches at the idea of handing him over to Kled.
"I wonder, was this oasis once under the stewardship of a druid? If so, what happened to him or her? A druid wouldn't simply let you poison the waters."
Kirr nervously glances about as if looking for a way out.
"...a druid once called this oasis their home, yes." Kirr swallows. "He would have interfered with the chief's wishes to punish Urik. So we took him."
Crow tilted his head at the excuse. "So? I get beaten if I'm told to do something and it was the wrong thing to do." It happened on occasion. Just following instructions was no defence against them being the wrong instructions.