Before you can depart from the temple, a grinning goblin steps out into the clearing. Clad in leather armor and a skullcap, the goblin bravely strides toward you in a manner that borders on arrogance, but doesn't quite cross the line.
"You guys are wicked tough! I watched you fight that big bear. Bam! Whoosh! Pow! You really did a number on him!" the goblin says. He points at Deregar. "Especially this guy and his dragon friend! You all are real adventuring heroes, aren't ya? My name's Nok-Nok! I am a great goblin hero, and I'm ready to help you kill monsters!"
Tyr slithers up and sniffs the goblin, "A hero to whom?"
”A hero to all! Though, I’m just getting started in that line of work,” Nok-Nok says. He sniffs Tyr right back. ”I am ready to help kill big, scary monsters! But I promise that I won’t kill my friends! Will you be my friends?”
Tandri looks startled, as well as a little confused "Um... do we?" she asks the others, as she is rather unsure. But she did like the sound effects, so she brings herself to ask "What can you do?"
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"What can I do?" Nok-Nok echoes Tandri's question. He grins again and draws a pair of sharp kukris. "I can do this!" he says as he slashes the air. "And that!" He slices again. "I'd give 'em a HA! And a HAI-YAH! And then I'd kick them!"
The goblin sheathes the blades again. "Also, I am very sneaky! Good hero traits, yes?"
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"They can be useful." Sariana agrees with a smile. Unlike blonde-and-shiny this goblin amuses her, which is definitely a positive thing. "We'll have to make sure we all get along, but for now, welcome to our little group."
Or not so little now. The thought is quite a pleasant one. My kingdom is coming together nicely. Once we crush that Stag Lord at least.
Tandri laughs, but manages to get that under control quickly. Nodding instead with a wide smile "yes, Good Hero traits, welcome" she says with a swishing tail.
"Hooray!" Nok-Nok shouts, jumping up and down in exctiement.
"I like him. He has spunk," Amiri says with a laugh.
"I don't know if it's such a good idea inviting someone so volatile into our ranks," Valerie says dubiously.
"Well, it certainly won't be boring!" Linzi says optimistically.
"He shall provide a bit of amusement as we await our inevitable demises," Harrim says grimly.
"Send him in first. He'll slow the monsters down before they can get to the rest of us," Jaethal says slyly.
***
The next day, you journey southwest to continue exploring the thick forests of the Greenbelt. The ground slumps into a soggy mire, and a pair of ruined stone buildings jut from the ground.
As you approach, a lone boggard emerges from the nearest building. He holds up his hands and croaks out in Common, "Truce! Truce!"
"Hello, there. Who are you, and what are you doing in the Greenbelt?" Deregar regards the boggard with suspicion.
At least they didn't come out with swords drawn.
The boggard blinks and points to himself. "Garuum. Me Garuum." He points to Deregar. "Truce. You go?"
It doesn't seem like the boggard knows very many words in the Common language.
"We should stab him while he's unarmed! Take him out before he can fight back!" Nok-Nok suggests, eyes gleaming.
"Great. Does anyone speak frog?"
Deregar points at the buildings. "What are those buildings?"
Tandri lets out a strangled that sounds like someone stepped on a cat "I don't trust him, he looks... suspicious."
Tandri bounces back and forth on her feet, but doesn't do anything. No matter how much she doesn't like frogs, she is not a murderer. And this feels like murder. Somewhat.
Garuum follows Deregar's pointing. The boggard struggles to communicate. "Me. Boggard." It seems as if he's trying to say that the buildings belong to him.
He nods to Sariana, indicating that he is alone.
"He has done nothing to threaten or harm us," Valerie says sternly in response to Sariana's suggestion to kill Garuum. "I do not condone unwarranted murder."
"Yeah, that doesn't seem like something heroes would do," Linzi agrees.
The rest of your companions seem indifferent to the boggard's fate.
"One boggard is unlikely to hurt anyone, and he was perfectly peaceful to us when we arrived."
As they leave, Tandri keeps looking back, Certain it is going to attack once their backs are turned. That night she sits up from her sleep, muttering worriedly 'croak' before collapsing back into her bedroll.
Leaving Garuum to his own devices for now, you head east the next day. Deep in the woods here, you come across a hollow beneath a large fallen pine tree. The tree’s branches create a natural shelter currently littered with bones. Spoor around the area suggests this is the lair of a particularly large boar.
”It must be Tuskgutter!” Amiri says. ”We should wait for the beast to return, then take it down to claim the bounty!”
Tandri makes sure her crossbow is loaded as she tries to remember anything she might know about boars.
Tandri spent a long time in the wild, just to get away from People. A huge tree was perfect to rest in, right next to a trail frequented by boars. Maybe not the size this Tuskgutter is said to be, but still boars.
"I think... he'll be back around sunset, coming through this trail, I think, at least."
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"You can take the lead on this one then Amiri." Sariana says with a grin. "Just make sure you stay upwind."
That shouldn't be a problem for her - one upside of being undead is that the body stops producing most secretions, so sweat and other such smells are not much of a problem. Fortunately she is not completely without biological function - both pleasure and pain (and their associated other things) still work just fine, which is something she thanks Zon Kuthon for regularly.
Amiri nods. She directs most of your other companions to stay far away so as not to startle the boar. Only the very sneaky Nok-Nok is allowed to be part of the ambush party. You take up positions near the fallen log and wait.
After several hours, an oversized boar with a distinctive pattern of gray bristles on his face returns to the lair. You get ready to attack Tuskgutter as he draws near...
Unfortunately, the boar spots you first! With a squeal, the beast charges in to attack Sariana with his tusks!
That squeal... sharp with an upturn in pitch making it feel like a serrated blade across your inner ear. Followed by the thundering beast smashing through the undergrowth, then tearing into their vampire.
"How did that sneak up on us?" the cleric would ask later. Now though she let out her own unfortunate sound, quickly cast a spell on Sariana, then ran out of the path of the beast.
Other than a quiet argument with Dante over whether he should be involved in the assault on the boar - she being in the 'Definitely No' faction, Floare sits calmly in the shade as they wait for their prey.
When the beast appears, she begins her spell to summon a creature to fight for them.
An eagle answers the call, descending from the sky and engaging with its talons.
Apparently, an ornery boar is no match for an empowered half-elf vampire. Sariana wrestles the big pig and snaps its neck, putting a swift end to Tuskgutter’s reign of terror.
Tandri had been hurrying out of the way, when she hears the mighty behind her. Followed by a complete absence of boar squealing.
Turning she sees the prone form of the hefty swine along with the rising form of the vampire. Softly she whispers a simple exclamation of "F!%$" and reminds herself to stay off Sariana's bad side.
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"Oh my! He won't be bothering anyone else." Deregar whistles in astonishment. "And bacon for days!"
After Deregar announces bacon is on the menu, the tension in Tandri bursts like a river of giggles.
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Sariana rises, stretches slowly and cracks her neck in both directions before turning to Amiri with a smirk.
"Feel like carrying it since I did all the work?" She jests to the barbarian. Joking aside she is quite happy to help gut the pig and lay out strips for curing - her quiet competence at the task showing that she is no stranger to a knife, or to cutting up bodies pigs.
"You heroes are too strong!" Nok-Nok laments. "I didn't even get a chance to stab it!"
"It will make a fine feast," Jaethal proclaims, a thin smile on the pale elf's lips.
"I'll make some haggis from its innards!" Harrim says, the dour dwarf perking up significantly from the thought.
You all eat well at the camp that night. You save the boar's tusks to claim the bounty the next time you check in at Oleg's.
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Sariana actually eats that night, although she takes her meat from the fire when it could only charitably be described as cooked and seems to spend an inordinate amount of time chewing on it.
Over dinner she converses with Nok-Nok, trying to learn a little about the goblin.
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The next morning Sariana proposes that they continue to explore the edge of the forest, heading south.
Nok-Nok talks a lot about his desires to become a hero. He tells Sariana that he is the sole survivor of a goblin village of Mudsip. A scary hydra attacked, devouring all the other goblins, but Nok-Nok claims to have defeated the hydra in single combat! Lamashtu herself then granted the goblin his two kukris as a reward for his mighty deed! The veracity of the story is questionable, and Sariana finds it difficult to glean true insights from the goblin's tall tales.
***
As you continue exploring the southern reaches of the Greenbelt the next day, a mangy dog emerges from the undergrowth! The dog barks and whines to get your attention. He dances on his paws, turns to take several steps away, then turns back to you and steps forward again to bark and whine, over and over.
Tandri spends the evening talking with Harrim, asking about his haggis recipe, hovering attentively while he cooks, even sitting close and gushing a bit at the flavor. "Haggis always made everyone happy at home." she told him as her tails wrapped slowly around the nearest object. She decided to not mention she liked everyone being happy because they tended to ignore her more at those times.
Deregar feasts on boar, while Tyr curls next to the fire and enjoys the smell. "Tell me, Valerie, have you done much boar hunting? It seems a fitting pursuit, and the spoils are certainly enjoyable."
Floare steers clear of Sairiana's butchery and declines the offer of the extra meat. Her eating habits indicate that she's a vegetarian. In fact, as the pork is being roasted that night, she keeps a significant distance between herself and the cooking fire.
'It smells too much like ....'
Her stomach gurgles in protest and she moves even further away and pushes the bile back down.
~~~~~
Dante's ears and tail perk up when the dog appears. "It doesn't seem aggressive," Floare says.
I want to say 'Hello', Mom.
"Stay here, Dante. I'm going to see what it wants." She moves closer, staying low and speaking in soft tones. "Hello there," she says. "What are you doing out here in the woods? You don't look the loner type."
Once the fire has died down and watches have been set, Floare moves near Sariana and takes a seat on a nearby fallen log. Dante contents himself with exploring the nearby undergrowth.
"So ... It seems that blood does not comprise the entirety of your diet," she says quietly. "Fresh meat fills in the cracks once in a while, eh?"
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"Not really." Sariana replies. "I was eating for the other's benefit, not my own. There's no sustenance in regular food for me. I can eat, but I'll pay for it later. Consider yourself lucky Little One, you have a choice in what you eat, meat or no."
She pauses for a moment and then stands in a quick, graceful movement and holds out a hand.
"Come on. I've got something to show you that you'll appreciate."
"I'm not sure why you call me 'Little One'," Floare says with a slight smirk as she stands ... and looks down at the shorter woman. "And it's not really a choice. If I tried eating meat ... let's just say that it would get messy really quick."
She does, however, take Sariana's hand.
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"You always manage to be remarkably... young." Sariana replies, "You are all so young, but you have something about you Little One. Something... innocent. Child-like still, despite the horror in your eyes."
With that odd statement she leads Floare off into the gathering gloom and stops a couple of minutes from the fire in front of bushes filled with large, dark berries.
"Blackberries." She says, fangs flashing briefly in the evening light. "I came across them earlier and thought you might appreciate something fresh and sweeter than rations."
Floare reaches out and plucks one of the ripe berries and pops it into her mouth. Her eyes close in pleasure. "Wonderful." She turns to look at the vampire next to her.
"I'm not as innocent as you make me out to be," she says, her smile fading. "I'm not guiltless in ... things that have happened. Please don't put me on a pedestal of that sort." She turns back to the treasure trove that's been revealed to her.
"But I can make some wonderful blackberry biscuits with these."
Her smile returns and she proceeds to fill her apron with the dark berries.
~~~~
True to her word, the morning's breakfast is accompanied by fresh blueberry biscuits - courtesy of Sariana's find, Tandri's supplies, and Floare's pre-dawn labor.
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"Pedestals are annoying." Sariana replies. "People are taller than me enough of the time without me raising them up first." She frowns as Floare settles into her snack.
"I..." She pauses and starts again. "You're not innocent Little One. I can see that - you don't hide it well, at least not from me. But paladins are the most boring people in the world."
Her voice drops, becoming deeper and smoother in the gloom. "I like darkness. In the sky, in people. White is fine, but it is the shadows on paper, the scars on skin, those are the interesting parts."
A cool hand slides down Floare's flank, leaving goosebumps in its wake. "Would you show me yours Little One?" The invitation is largely innocent in tone, but the voice makes it sinful. "I'd like to see your skin..."
Floare's cheeks flush and she reaches down to untie the string at her wrist that closes her sleeve. With a slowness that may be nervousness or deliberate, she slides the light material up to her elbow, revealing the skin of her arm.
Silently, she holds it out, presenting the limb to Sariana. The skin is sun-darkened with marks here and there demonstrating much time spent in the wilds.
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Sariana cocks her head sharply as Floare proffers her arm and then swoops in on the limb, holding it in one powerful hand. She bends down close enough to kiss the skin, enough that the hairs on Floare's arm stand on end as the vampire traces a single cold finger along it. She glides over the small scars and punctures of an outdoor life, and traces for a moment the thicker scar band at Floare's wrist before lowering her mouth and licking long, sensuous lines down the offered arm.
"Delightful." Sariana murmurs, looking up at Floare with heavily lidded eyes. She tugs Floare down towards her effortlessly and the young woman suddenly finds the vampire at her neck, cold lips brushing just above sensitive skin. Sariana's sigh is thrilling sound, full of promise and temptation but the vampire doesn't go any further, even though Floare can practically feel the fangs ghosting against her skin.
"Ah, yes! These flavors take me back to my youth, when life was more carefree," Harrim says wistfully as he boils the combination of grains onions, spices, and organ meats inside of Tuskgutter's stomach. He speaks at length with Tandri about his youth. It's the first time the cleric has seen Harrim open up at all.
***
Valerie gives Deregar a smile as he sits next to her. "My family took me on a few boar hunts when I was young. I enjoyed the sport, yes, but by the time I was old enough to do the actual hunting on my own, I had been shipped off to pursue the destiny my father had chosen for me. A destiny I have long since spurned in favor of finding my own path in life."
This alleged "destiny" seems to be a bit of a sore subject, and she doesn't elaborate further if asked about it. As the conversation winds down, though, the beautiful warrior gives the summoner an appraising look. "I want to thank you for being so kind and welcoming. Many people who I have encountered have been fixated on my appearance, and I have become accustomed to resisting the unwanted advances of countless admirers. You've treated me as an actual human being. I am grateful, and I look forward to continuing to adventure with you. Please accept tis token of my appreciation."
She gifts Deregar a moderate juggernaut mutagen.
***
The strange dog races off into the undergrowth, but takes care to pause and look back at Floare. The witch realizes that he wants you to follow him.
The dog leads you to a nook between a pair of large boulders. Here, a dark-skinned man in leather armor lies. Several bloody makeshift bandages patch painful-looking wounds. He is unconscious but stable, his breath coming in ragged gasps. The anxious dog rushes to the man's side to lick nervously at his face.
You can hear the sound of something large but distant crashing through the underbrush and periodically bellowing in anger...