Ruinë is proud of Ashlion, not hunting the wolves made her quite happy.
When she sees the brand, she frowns. This was all of her doing. We shouldn't have to be fighting this creature!
She sighs, it was what it was. She sends a blast of fire towards the wolf.
Tasha moves forward to give Ashlion flanking assistance and stabs at the wolf-like creature.
Tom {A}strides around to be opposite Tasha. Still unspeaking, looking truly like his name.
Ashlion, Ruine, and Tasha all miss with their attacks, but Tom lands a good hit with his knife. Kalkek snarls and bites the rogue but misses with his claws. Then he suddenly teleports 10 feet west, appearing behind Ashlion!
Ruinë casts bless and moves up next to Tom. .
"Hold your guts in Tom, I'll be with you in a moment."
Tom slathers his knife with poison {A} and then his face scrunches up in anger, as a lot of his emotions come tumbling out. When it's attention becomes focused on Ashlion, Tom does is best to distract the beast, stomping a foot and letting out a guttural roar!
When the beast is startled he throws the poisoned knife!
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Tasha attempts to roll past the beast to continue to flank with Ashlion, but fails. She then attempts to stab at it again.
Grelda blasts Kalkek with three magic missiles, while Ruine casts a blessing and moves to aid the party. Ashlion misses with his attacks, even with his wolf aiding him. Tasha fails to tumble past the creature, but luckily she barely manages to dodges his opportunistic strike. She stabs him once, but he blinks away to avoid the damage. Tom fares better, distracting the beast and plunging a poisoned dagger into his flank.
Kalkek makes Tom pay for the wound, though, delivering a critical strike with his jaws and slicing him with a claw! The rogue dodges his second claw, avoiding collapsing for now, though the bleeding wounds means he will need healing soon to avoid unconsciousness!
Kalkek blinks back to his original position!
Gritting her teeth as she sees Tom's severe injuries, Grelda unleashes more magic missiles in an effort to take the dangerous creature down!
As if she had ordained it so, Tom gets injured while she is next to him. She sets off trying to patch him up, but his injuries are worse than she expects and she fails to do so.
Instead, she casts a healing spell to minimally keep him on his feet.
"Sorry, friend, but you will die in this cave," Tasha announces.
Tom {A}Steps 5ft back behind Ashlion and throws his daggers around the hulking hunk.
Ashlion scores a hit with his maul, then while Tom misses with his daggers, Tasha manages to land a confident strike that finishes off Kalkek! The monster falls with a whimper, his body blinking about for a few more seconds before the magic fades.
Tom pokes at the beast with a knife and looks back up to Grelda,"...what IS it?"
Tasha wipes her blade on the creatures fur before sliding it back into her belt.
"It's dead. What more matters?"
THEY tried to kidnap it, THEY branded it, and WE had to clean up the mess... But it gives me an idea! Grelda, can you take it's pelt to make me a disguise?"
Grelda quirks an eyebrow. ”I suppose? What do you have in mind?”
"It said "you won't take me again... I wonder what they did to it? We should start a terror campaign. They don't know it's dead, and it sounded like it wanted revenge."
Tom thinks for a moment before pointing at the brand. "It's pretty close to the city, do you think it's killed anyone? If it has, we can show the brand as proof that it's HER fault."
"Don't obsess over revenge, Tom," Tasha says with a sad look. "If Dusklight is willing to live and let live then we should do the same. There is more than enough audience in this city for the both of us."
"If she decides to take action against us then we'll reconsider."
"I'd sell my soul to Urgathoa if I thought it would help me put her in the ground, Desna forgive me..."
Tasha's voice takes on a sterner tone. "It's not just about you, though," she says. "Your desires are your own, but be careful about pulling the whole family into a war that no one wins."
The dire wolf creeps to the cave mouth and looks at the dead Kalkek. ”It is done,” it says to Ashlion. ”We will honor our bargain. There are human things in the other caves. You may take them on the way out.”
The wolf also warns Ashlion of dangerous yellow mold on the pillar in the cave, allowing you to avoid the hazard. The cloth sack you saw earlier is actually a type I bag of holding containing a dust of appearance, a lesser elixir of life, and a silver lensatic compass worth 30 gp engraved with the words “Always find your way back to me.”
The other cave you bypassed has rusty caltrops by the entrance. A dry patch in the western edge of the cavern is swept clean of rubble and contains a threadbare bedroll and an old, cracked waterskin near a disused fire pit. Tucked in the bedroll is an old notebook.
This loose‐leaf parchment notebook is bound in burgundy leather and tied shut with a knotted silver cord. The journal details the exploits of a pickpocket‐turned‐cat burglar on the streets of Escadar named Juniper Winzel. These entries are dated beginning in 4700 AR. The scale of Juniper’s crimes grows as the entries’ dates approach the present, progressing into ambitious heists targeting banks and temples. Toward the end of her journal, Juniper confides her fears that Andera Paldreen, a competent deputy working to rise in the constabulary, has obtained evidence of Juniper’s guilt. The journal’s final entry is dated 4712 AR.
Juniper’s journal also references stolen items hidden in a tree in a nearby glade. Indeed, on your way back to the circus camp, you find a path to this glade. An overgrown hunting path ends at the small glade with a spring‐fed pool beneath the boughs of a huge oak tree.
Searching, you find a knot in the oak tree’s trunk carved with the initials JW. The knot’s bark crumbles away easily, revealing a shallow niche. The cache in the tree consists of a chime of opening, a moderate darkvision elixir, and 10 pp.
"It would seem fortuitous that we were allowed to search this lot. We have righted many wrongs this day and we should all be thankful for each other. Let me start by saying that I love and appreciate each and every one of you. Thank you for everything you do for me and for our family."
The cleric moves in for a group hug, but positions herself between Tom and Tasha so ASHLION can squeeze someone else to death.
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Grelda slyly steps in front of Ashlion, volunteering as tribute.
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Ashlion cheerfully joins in the group hug. Grelda and Tom feel the most considerable force of his exuberance. "THIS IS GOOD, SUNSHINE! YOU ARE ALL FAMILY TO ME TOO. UNTIL BABY COMES. THEN YOU ARE STILL FAMILY SO YOU CAN HELP RAISE HIM!" Ashlion declares happily. He either hasn't noticed Grelda's position shifting, or hasn't understood the meaning behind it...
Grelda leans into the hug, pressing her soft body against Ashlion's muscular form. Though her bones crack slightly, she smiles.
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Returning to the camp with their bounty Ashlion loudly explains that the wolves will no longer be a problem and then takes up an axe to start on the clearing work.
He works shirtless (of course), muscles rippling in the sun as he powers through the work. It is only when his wife comes over with her own tools and a large jug of water for them both that he stops, drinks deeply and speaks quietly to her.
"DEAREST ONE OF MY HEART. I THINK GRELDA WITCH IS ATTRACTED TO ME. SHE HAS BEEN VERY CLOSE TO ME RECENTLY, WHENEVER SHE CAN. HAS SHE SPOKEN TO YOU ABOUT THIS? SHE IS NOT OF THE TRIBE, SO PERHAPS SHE DOES NOT KNOW HOW THESE THINGS ARE?"
Tygrah glances across the way, where Grelda stands very obviously trying not to stare at the shirtless Ashlion. "We have not spoken, husband, but I can see what you mean. She is practically drooling over you right now. And who could blame here? You are a fine specimen of manhood!"
She leans closer and lowers her voice. "She does not know the tribal ways, but perhaps we could induct her as a member. If you are interested? You claimed me as your battle bride, husband, but there is nothing restricting you from having multiple brides."
Tom, who was also watching Ashlion, makes a sudden realization. He tries to remove his shirt casually, but gets awkwardly tangled first. While he's well defined, he's wiry and lean compared to the beef of Ashlion.
Hoping nobody noticed, he starts formaning the rest of the clearing crew.
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"YOU ARE MY HEART AND FIRST IN MY LIFE, ALWAYS TYGRAH." Ashlion rumbles. "BUT GRELDA WITCH IS ATTRACTIVE, AND MAGIC WOULD MAKE FOR STRONG CHILDREN. IF YOU EXPLAIN OUR TRIBES CUSTOMS I WILL NOT BE UNHAPPY."
He demonstrates just how 'not unhappy' he is by kissing Tygrah passionately, and then taking up his axe once again and cutting with renewed vigor!
Tygrah returns the kiss with gusto, then she approaches Grelda and takes her aside for a private conversation. After a while, the witch returns to the camp and approaches Ashlion, her cheeks flush. "So, uh... Your wife had some very interesting things to say about Vudran tribal customs..."
She trails off, hoping Ashlion will pick up what she's putting down.
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"YOU ARE ATTRACTIVE GRELDA WITCH." Ashlion replies, going straight to the point as is his way. "TYGRAH IS MY BATTLE BRIDE AND CANNOT BE REPLACED, BUT I WOULD BE DELIGHTED TO HAVE YOU AS A WIFE ALSO. IF YOU ARE WILLING TOO." He pauses and looks the witch straight in the eye, fairly easy since they are near the same height. "OUR WAYS ARE NOT THE WAYS OF THIS LAND. SOME WIVES AND HUSBANDS CANNOT WORK TOGETHER WHEN THERE ARE THREE OF THEM. THEY FIGHT AND THINGS GO WRONG. IF YOU DO NOT FEEL THAT THIS IS SOMETHING YOU CAN DO THEN I UNDERSTAND. BUT I AM VERY ATTRACTED TO YOU AND YOU FEEL THE SAME WAY ABOUT ME. THERE ARE MARRIAGES IN THE TRIBES THAT HAVE STARTED FROM MUCH LESS."
Grelda blush deepens when Ashlion confesses his attraction for her. "It is... unorthodox, perhaps, but I am willing to give it a shot. I am quite attracted to you as well, Ashlion. So if this is you proposing marriage to me, then... I accept."
She smiles and shifts on her feet awkwardly. "So, uh... Do we... Do we kiss now?"
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"ABSOLUTELY!" Ashlion replies and proceeds to do so with great enthusiasm. Once Grelda is left gasping for air Ashlion looks to his battle bride who points at the floor until light dawns in his eyes. Ashlion clears his throat and goes down on one knee.
"AT HOME I WOULD CARRY YOU INTO THE JUNGLE AND DARE YOUR FAMILY TO COME AND CLAIM YOU BACK AGAIN, THEN WHEN THEY DID NOT WE WOULD BE WED. BUT HERE, I THINK THIS IS CORRECT. GRELDA W-, GRELDA WILL YOU BE MY WIFE?"
The kiss does indeed take Grelda's breath away, and when Ashlion finally pulls away, her turban is askew and her robes disheveled. But the witch is beaming, and she continues to do so as the barbarian proposes. "Yes, Ashlion. I will be your wife," she declares.
Watching from a distance, Grelda's familiar twitches his tail. "Well, that escalated quickly," he hisses to nobody in particular.
Glad to have something good to celebrate, Tasha calls for the family to gather around the newly engaged couple to wish them good luck.
She moves to Tygrah's side. "So does that make you sister-wives or are you married to her as well?" she asks.
”I am married only to my husband,” Tygrah tells Tasha. ”He may choose to enjoy either of our attentions, or both of us at once, as is his pleasure.”
Seeing Tom took his shirt off, Ruinë frowns. She asks "Tom are you not cold? Your nipples are hard and it looks like you have goose pimples on your skin, so you are cold? Why would you take your shirt off?"
She places her hands on his arm, "Are you injured? Should I assist you in some way?"
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”I am married only to my husband,” Tygrah tells Tasha. ”He may choose to enjoy either of our attentions, or both of us at once, as is his pleasure.”
"THEIR PLEASURE IS MOST IMPORTANT." Ashlion adds. "I WILL BE EXHAUSTED RAPIDLY! IN OUR TRIBE THE OLD CHIEF HAD FOUR WIVES. HE THREW HIMSELF INTO BATTLE LIKE A MADMAN. IT WAS EASIER THAN BEING AT HOME!"
After working with the other circus members for a bit, you turn back to exploring the nearby wilderness. The heavy log blocking the western path into the woods shows signs of a colony of centipedes living within it. You are able to deal with the swarm handily before hauling the log out of the way.
The stream flowing into the valley empties into a small swamp on the valley’s south side. Harboring slick muck and thick reeds, the swamp looks difficult to navigate. Three islands of earth rise above the swamp water. A few logs connect some of the islands.
The largest of the islands in the swamp contains the stone foundation of a small building that once stood here. The foundation is now overgrown with weeds and almost entirely obscured. Near the log leading west from this island sprawls a mostly intact halfling skeleton.
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The skeleton still clutches a leather satchel containing a sodden map of the area indicating the three islands of the swamp and a crumbled keep to the east that isn’t visible from the valley floor. The westernmost island is marked with the words “St. Alkitarem’s Eye?”
The skeleton’s satchel also contains an invisibility potion and 14 gp. Although the skeleton’s leather armor is now merely tatters, it has an intact beckoning cat amulet affixed to it.
"Anyone heard of Alkitarem before?"
Grelda shrugs. "I have not. But they seemed to think it was over there."
She points to the small island to the west. The island is ringed by large trees whose roots grow together to form a nearly impassable barrier. The only opening in this ring of trees is the enormous fallen log leading to the swamp’s larger, central island.
You can glimpse blazing orange light between the roots of a tree that resembles a campfire.
"Huh... then he turns to Tasha, "Sef, I'll be back, I'm going to scout ahead"
Tom drinks the invisibility potion and skulks off.
Creeping across the log, Tom gets a better view of the island's interior. He can see that the light does not come from a campfire, but from a glowing ball of translucent light that bobs up and down slightly. Its light glints off a silver chain amid the tree roots that bears a brass housing with tiny brass wings.
"I don't know if you should ..." Tasha begins, but the man has already literally vanished. "... go by yourself," she finishes lamely.
Tom moves over to the brass housing to see if he can undo the chain.