The giant is hit by the bag of glue but can circumvent bring stuck!
The crossbow bolt hits the giant as Nistivo planned.
“Arghhh!!! I will eat you!!!“ the creature shouts and charges to Elu to attack with his flail in two hands but Elu can dodge because the creature is entangled.
~
Initiative
Eranahu
Ekadan
Elu
Copper Tam
Nistivo
Ettin, -1
You slash and bludgeon and pierce and magically attack the Ettin!!
You only hear a ...
"Erghhhh .... ahrghhrrhhrhh ..." and the large giant drops to the ground like a stone.
Clinging to the foul skin of the Ettin you find a beautiful, glittering golden pendant in the shape of a dragon's head which was smeared with blood. You can easily search the rest of the cavern, finding nothing but filth.
Additionally, a ring and several Thassilonian relics are bound to the Ettin's right hand.
The markings which were cut into the skin of the Ettin are diabolic runes which could be used to protect giants from draconic beings with the right focus. Together with the ring as well as the relics, the amulet could serve as exactly that focus. Essentially, you assume that Aureliax would not have been able to protect the town as it would not have been able to harm this Ettin.
The woman that the Ettin dropped is probably Gilda Korgren, the mother of the Tiefling. She also has runes carved all over her body.
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"Remember, VC Dreng said Gilda had some kind of ring crafted so we need to look for it. And it looks like we found those Thassilonian relics that went missing. Hah!"
Ekadan helps to search the area and gather up everything that needs to be carried back to town.
"Ouch! The runes killed her, not the giant. I guess she didn't check the fine print heh."
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"So, she was attempting to take revenge on the town and was smart enough to protect the Ettin against the dragon. But not smart enough to protect herself against her own weapon. This takes care of what the kids were up to, we foiled the plot of the cult, Kostchtchie, and Gilda seems to taken care of herself. We found the missing relics, but should we report this so that the shipping company can do their own internal investigation to see how it went missing? That sounds good to me. And what to do about these kids? Oh, Nistivo, I think that we need to give that gold pendant back to the dragon." He ends his thoughts with a smile at the word dragon
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"The ring are part of the dragon repellent as well......"
"Carving runes on your body with such primitive techinique will only get yourself killed, like this."
"Elu think we should talk to the mayor about those missing relics, there might be more to this cult than two thieves. As for the kids, Elu would says just let the townfolks handle it themselves."
After searching the cave and dealing with the ettin's body, Elu suddenly drop to her knees, cough up some blood, and breathing heavily. "Elu is fine, don't worry. It's just......some side effect of having too much in Elu's system."
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At the reminder that the amulet belongs to Aurelliax, Nistivo audibly sighs and . . . is that a pout? "Very well!" he says crossly. "But these Thassilonian artifacts are surely ours for the taking. They must be worth something on the open market, though one can only imagine the flood of such artifacts in recent years will have devalued their worth. Honestly, I do not know how anyone makes a living in this turgid economy."
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"It's stolen property! You try to take it and sell it and your head will be on the chopping block. Did you hit your head or something? As for the kids, let's talk to the dwarf lady first; she seems to be looking after these two lunkheads. We can then let her deal with the Mayor. I just want to see if there's a reward for finding all this stuff and saving the day. I knew I was cut out to be a hero!"
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Tam hums joyfully as she finishes up her search and joins the party, standing on tiptoe to look over Nistivo's shoulder at the amulet, careful not to touch him.
She grins. "Far be it for me to touch another person's belongings without permission," she starts, adding "But I'm sure the Thassilonian artifacts can find value somewhere. I might be able to find us a buyer."
Wrapping her belt around her and adjusting her harness, Tam asks, "Everyone ready? We should head back out to check on Richelle and Tolwin. Can't be too much fun being stuck chained to the cart."
After you have defeated the ettin and recovered the golden pendant, you emerge from the cave to find yourselves ... face to face with Aurelliax in her true form .
She is a magnificent mature adult gold dragon whose presence dwarfs your own.
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Ekadan stops dead in his tracks, sizes up Aurelliax, nods his head cooly, and then points at Nistivo and says, "He's got your amulet."
He goes on to add, "There's a dead demon cultist and ettin in the cave, they wanted to kill you, and these kids here got mixed up in the scheme. Oh and some ring and weird runes and stuff I don't understand."
The dragon raises an eyebrow when hearing Nistivo's tone ... silence follows for several seconds.
”Thank you, travelers, for protecting the people of Highdelve, and for recovering my amulet. Truly, you are the heroes these people needed. Let me commend you, as well, for sparing the lives of those children that belong to this town ... I will take care that they are loved and brought back to this community!“ she says with a rumbling voice.
The dragon nods with respect to Eranahu.
“I was surprised to see that the cultist really were so eager to harm the one thing that means so much to me … Highdelve. The blood sacrifice combined with the depletion of all magic in these items was necessary to make the giant invulnerable to my attacks. But … you were here!“ the dragon says and it’s golden scales move as it raises its head in thought.
The dragon looks at Elu and nods. "Yes, I do know." is the only thing she says.
You see the golden pendant rip away from Nistivo's grasp and levitate in the golden dragon’s direction ... and it vanishes when touching her scales.
She looks at you for a while.
”Please accept these as a token of my appreciation.“
Four statuettes of gold dragons with diamonds for eyes appear out of thin air and levitate to your hands.
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Oh! I wish that I could see magic. I need to keep practicing, I've almost got it. Even if it's not magical, it's a very nice piece. I'm sure Nistivo will be happy to sell it.
Eranahu will bow low in acceptance. "This is most generous."
How do I ask for a ride? Would they think it rude? I have to try though, right?
"Thank you. We should probably get these flowers back to town so that they can continue their celebration. It's so far though..."
You can see that she is content to see you appreciate the presents which truly look identical to her perfect form.
”Now,” she says, unfurling her magnificent wings. ”would you care to ride in the cart as I carry the cart of brightblooms, along with the children, back to Highdelve?”
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Ekadan's face drains of color when Aurelliax states the relics were drained of their magic. He brightens up when presented with one of the gold dragon statuettes, "Whew thank goodness! When you said the magic items were drained I thought we weren't going to get a reward for returning all the stolen stuff. But what a fine reward! Many thanks noble Aurelliax! Hey this statuette even looks like you!"
When Aurelliax says she'll carry the cart bearing the brightblooms, children, and the PCs back to Highdelve, Ekadan jumps into the cart and muscles his way to the front, "Alright this is going to be fun! WHEE!!!"
After the ride of your life you land in Highdelve and can finally enjoy the jubilee!
You also see the dragon in human form when the town welcomes you all!
What you do with the rest of your time ... only you can tell!
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Elu enjoy the rest of the Brightbloom Jubilee with her teammates. When it's over, Elu writes a letter to the fried dough maker on behalf of the Exchange faction, hoping to create new business oppotunity here.
It reads:
Dear Mr. Toshi,
I hope this letter finds you well. Our emissary of the Exchange was highly impressed by the delicious fried dough you served at the Brightbloom Jubilee. We believe that our extensive supply network of high-quality, reasonably priced ingredients will greatly benefit your business as a successful restaurateur.
The Exchange is interested in forming a mutually beneficial partnership with you. We are confident that our proposal will align with your interests and look forward to the opportunity for collaboration.
Sincerely,
Eluaria Valkyria Passion Frosia.
Toshi is truly grateful for the opportunity to work with such a capable representative of the Exchange!!
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Nistivo cradles the statuette he's been given like it's a sleeping baby, and he looks at it with almost parental affection. "Not bad," he murmurs to himself. "Not bad at all! Deducting for expended crossbow bolts, wand charges, incidentals, and general wear-and-tear on the carriage, this mission should still turn a tidy profit!" He hurries off to search for any other business opportunities in Highdelve before he and his allies must return to the nearest Lodge to report their success.
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Eranahu imagines that the wagon ride back to town will be the highlight of his life for quite some time! After returning, he will go fully back into jubilee mode, experiencing everything. To his companions he says. "This is one of those missions that may not have accomplished much on the global scale, but is the most meaningful in the world to these people. This is why I do this."
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Tam undoes her pigtails and lets the wind of travel flow through her red hair. The ride may have been short, but it was entirely worth it.
"Yeah, it was great being able to help out! And Richelle, they'll want you and Tolwin to spend some time cleaning up your messes around Highdelve, but once you're done, feel free to come visit the Pathfinders for work. If you really want to do more and greater things, there are plenty of ways to do it without trying to harm others."