Stom doesn't know enough about this huge bird to add anything. "If we are in agreement to scout the camp, then shall I lead the way? Or, Samael, will you try going in quietly?"
"Do we see any sign of one of the pillars here? Is this something we need to involve ourselves in"?
"Sure, I'll try to sneak through."
Samael is able to sneak up closer to the campsite, he doesn't see any blood, nor do the creatures look hurt like they were in a battle. The creatures appear to be rooting around looking for any food they can find.
As he is sneaking closer, he catches glimpse, like metal flashing off the sun. It draws his attention to three humanoid creatures about a 100 feet out of the camp, hiding in the foliage from the giant creatures.
Samael sneaks closer to the humanoids, making hand signals to be extra quiet. Then, he will try to communicate that he has friends nearby, and that they should follow him to get away from the giant creatures.
Samael creeps over to the humanoids, upon closer inspection they look like orcs or half orcs hunters, there are three of them. They say something in Orcish and then switch to Mwangi, but are confused when Samael understands neither.
Samael is able to point and communicate, having them follow him around the outskirts of the camp back towards your group.
Unfortunately, the three hunters were not as stealthy as Samael was alone, and one of them makes a large enough commotion. You all look slowly as you see the two Quetzalcoatlus heads rise in eerie unison. Black eyes fix on the newcomers. The larger of the two lets out a low, rattling hiss and takes a careful step forward, its talons sinking into the mud with a wet suck.
These creatures are hungry and are likely aggressive because of it, if one had food to provide, they could potentially be driven off, a nice tasty war pig could probably do the trick
The first Quetzalcoatlus unfurls massive wings, and does a quick swooping hop to close the 130 foot distance on your group. Landing in front of Wilbur.
Round 1 - When Dinosaurs Roamed the Golarion
Quetzalcoatlus 1 -
Lyra / Wilbur ☘️ -
Oppa / Doxie ☘️ -
Violant ☘️ -
Samael ☘️ -
Stom ☘️ -
Quetzalcoatlus 2 -
Samael, motioning to the orcs to stay back, gets out a dagger, moves behind Quetzalcoatlus 1, piercing damage.
Stom's eyes flash red with anger. "Let's see how you fight on your back!"
Stom chops at the giant bird with his axe and then attempts to sweep its legs out from under it before moving to better support Samael.
◇ Rage
◆◆ Slam Down
◆ Stride
◆◆ CAST: Stoneskin (20/0)
◆ Command Doxie
"Look Girl! Chicken... Your favorite food".
◆ STRIDE
◆ STRIKE: (VS #1 ... off guard)
Bite
Teeth.
"Ummmm".
Hero Point Bite
Violant casts Agonizing Despair at the nearest dinosaur, hoping their nature as animals causes them to have weak-willed minds.
She then raises her shield.
Lyra shouts in Orcish "Kiggitha bluutiry fullip ahrikkk" Casting bless around her and her companions.
She gives Wilbur a quick pat to the side of his neck and gives him a command. "Attack boy!"
____________________
Wilbur thrusts his tusks into the dinosaur two times.
the group springs into action to defend Wilbur from the hungry Pterosaur's advances.
In an explosion of violence your group brutally wounds the dinosaur with Violant blasting its mind with negative thoughts.
It staggers badly and Lyra spurs Wilbur and the Pig is adamant it will not be eaten today gores the Quetzalcoatlus tearing it open with its tusks and the great dinosaur falls over dead.
The other one, intelligent enough to know something is wrong decides it would rather fly away then follow the same fate as its wingmate.
The three orc hunters only speak Mwangi and Orcish, but they see Lyra and address her in Orcish.
The other two orcs step to immediately putting the camp back together and butchering what meat they can salvage from the giant Quetzelcoatlus while their leader Ifiok talks.
Like most fey, a kishi has inscrutable motives, though to their victims, the kishi's goal seems simple—to revel in the expression of shock, betrayal, and terror on a victim's face. These ultimate sadists derive pleasure from the thrill of the hunt as well as the delicious reward at the end. The more uptight, prudish, or haughty a target, the better—for nothing satisfies kishis as much as earning (and destroying) the trust of someone who rarely grants it. When kishis get their new friends or lovers alone, they choose the most dramatic moments to reveal their true monstrous forms and clamp their jaws down on their victim.
turning to acknowledge the rest of the group and continuing in Mwangi, "“We have little to offer but food and blades beside yours,” she says. “If you hunt the same darkness, we share the road. If not, we share a meal anyway. Hunters who waste gratitude do not live long."
Responding in Orcish, Lyra smiles "Good to see more who know of my Lady Fireswords great light. May it shine on you and your hunt"
With the one dinosaur dead and the other fled Lyra helps the orc hunters with resetting the camp and offering to help with butchering the meat.
"A Kishi? Im not familiar with this creature but it doesnt sound good..."
Nodding, explaining while they rebuild the camp, "These Kishi are demons of disguise, they will play tricks, win your trust, make you love them and then they reveal their true nature and devour you whole. My nephew is strong, he escaped but lost an arm still,"
Continuing to chat, "We were afraid to venture into the territory of the Ekujae, we are not enemies but the Ekujae are. . protective of their domain,"
Stom ponders if he knows what the kishi are.
"Never heard of a kishi before, but might be dangerous to hurt your kin so."
When the conversation turns to the Ekujae, Stom isn't sure if he should divulge the party's connection to the elf tribe. "Many peoples are protective of their lands. Have you quarreled with them in the past?"
Shaking her head, "I would not say we are enemies, the Ekujae though, they are very protective of their land, they have little tolerance for outsiders. Something must have happened to them if they are letting two different groups roam their territory unimpeded," Starting to cook a giant Quetzelcoatlus leg over the fire, like a 7 foot drumstick, "Have you encountered the Elves?"
"We have encountered with the Ekujae. They are protective of their lands, yes but once you earn their trust they are understanding." Lyra pulls out their map and points out the area of the elves. "you said your tracks led you to these lands?" gesturing to the map she continues "Where have you been so far?"
Lyra continues telling them of the dragon towers that they have come across and the different creatures, not native to these lands.
Shaking their head, "Our progress has not been much, the group was larger and we've been tracking the Kishi for two weeks now. When it passed into the Ekujae's territory much of the hunting band decided to return rather than cross into these lands. We three were determined to see this through," continuing to explain while she slowly spins the giant drumstick over a large fire now, "It has maybe a day or two on us, it continues to head north, I imagine it was trying to lose us across the river. We were hoping to catch it before that happened,"
With Lyra disclosing their involvement with the Ekujae, Stom feels more willing to be open with the orcs.
"Perhaps, if we hunt down this kishi together, that would help convince the Ekujae that they can coexist alongside you. Just as dwarf and orc have learned to do in some parts, despite our pasts. Where were the last tracks you spotted?"
Turning to the party, Stom shrugs. "We can help, right?
Lyra translating between the parties turns to Stom, "I would like to help, it is the right thing to do."
Lyra translates Stom's question into Orcish and points at the map to see if they might be heading in the same direction. "If you'd accept it, we offer our help. We plan to continue to explore this jungle, not only are there these dangerous Kishi you speak of but the Dragon pillars are causing much damage."
Looking at the map your group has, "This is much more detailed than our own, these Dragon Pillars and the cult you're dealing with explain much of why the Ekujae are absent. Looking at this map, I think our paths will intersect, this creature has been going almost in a straight line, making a beeline for the river, if it doesn't divert it should be in the same area as your Dragon Pillars," She compares her notes and details to place roughly where she thinks the Kishi could be.
"Ah well. I'm sure it will be painful... but we know what we have to do".
Violant nods, having translated any Mwangi the entire time since she's the only one who speaks it, and doesn't want to use her staff on this.
"I'm in agreement here, Oppa."
Seeing as how the group is in agreement to help the Orcfolk with their hunt Lyra mentions we should head out first thing in the morning. "My Father use to always say, a good nights rest brings out the best"
"We have enough food to last a bit longer now, so I say we keep hunting those blasted dragon pillars and find the kishi on the way."
Stom examines the map and points to A7 as their next destination. "That tower north and west of us seems like the next place."
Resting through night and filling your bellies on roast pterosaur, you guys are able to salvage enough food and the half orc hunters bolster your reserves with an additional 20 days of food.
Your group reaches the riverbank on the next day of travel, it is a similarly languid river that you have no trouble crossing again as your group is either strong enough swimmers or magically capable enough.
Crossing back onto the north side of the river you elect to camp one more time before pushing to the next pillar.
It isn't hard to find, your group has become accustomed to the signs of the Cinderclaw Cultists and how their presence pervades the land.
A recent battle seems to have taken place in this clearing. A dozen dead baboon-like humanoids lie sprawled on the ground around an area of disturbed earth that looks like it may have recently held some sort of post rising from the ground. A half-dozen stone statues of human explorers stand in the area in dramatic poses, their presence incongruous and unusual, to say the least.
In the clearing is a lone human with long blond hair and some sort of blunderbuss type weapon, he is just finishing lashing together some sort of make shift sled with a large tarped bundle affixed to the sled. He doesn't seem to have noticed your group yet.
Stom isn't sure what to make of the stranger and suggests one of the others talk to them. "Hard to tell if that one is friendly or not. Someone should talk for us, and it shan't be me!"
Lyra, always ready to spread the redeeming word of Saranrae, takes it upon herself to slowly approach the man.
"Good day! May the light of her flaming sword shine brightly upon you. My name is Lyra and my companions and I have been searching these parts for dragon pillars, like that one there. I see there are many slain Cinderclaws here, they are quite the scourge of this jungle."
The man startles slightly when Lyra speaks, straightening up from the sled with theatrical suddenness. He whirls around, brushing jungle dust from his coat with a flourish that suggests he imagines an audience of thousands watching from behind the trees.
“Ah! Splendid! Absolutely splendid!” he booms, “Civilized company at last! Capital fortune, my good woman!”
He spreads his arms grandly toward the battlefield around him.
“Gerhard Pendergrast, archaeologist, explorer, chronicler of the wild and mysterious Mwangi Expanse! You have arrived at the very scene of a most extraordinary discovery!”
He gestures dramatically toward the dead charau-ka.
“Savage fellows, those ape brutes. Quite determined to keep their grubby paws on this marvelous artifact, but I say, persistence and superior intellect win the day, eh what?” He pats the tarp-covered bundle on the sled with pride.
“Single-handedly liberated the thing from their clutches! A magnificent jungle totem of some antiquity. Fascinating craftsmanship. Positively dripping with historical significance!”
The half dozen stone statues of similarly dressed human explorers in the clearing seem to imply the single-handedly is doing a lot of work here.
Violant extends her hand. "Violant Turra, Professor of Mathematics at Lepidstadt. Got roped onto this on my sabbatical. Do you work for a university as well?"
Single-handedly. Yes.
" A Jungle artifact you say? weve come across many interesting artifacts and items through our journey. What did you find?"
He straightens his coat and gives a proud little tilt of his chin.
“Gerhard Pendergrast, at your service! Independent archaeologist, chronicler of antiquity, darling of the Taldan lecture circuit, and occasional guest speaker at institutions of learning that possess the proper appreciation for bold field research!”
He releases her hand and spreads his arms grandly toward the jungle around them.
“Universities, my dear Professor Turra, are splendid places for theory. But discovery? Discovery lives out here!” He thumps his boot against the earth for emphasis. “Mud on the boots! Blood in the air! Ancient secrets clawing their way out of the dirt!”
With a flourish, he flips part of the tarp back just enough to reveal a section of the carved blue dragon pillar, its weathered wood etched with ancient draconic runes.
“My working theory, you see, is that some ancient jungle cult erected these pillars as territorial markers. Perhaps dragon worshippers, perhaps something more esoteric. Hard to say until I get it somewhere civilized and conduct a proper examination.”
Oppa stands next to Doxie making sure there are no obvious parasites making a home on his best friend.
I'll just let those with honeyed words take on this arrogant being.
"That, uh is an interesting theory."
As Pendergrast continues chatting with Violant, Lyra softly whispers to Oppa and Stom "We gotta find a way to destroy that Blue dragon pillar. If its anything like the others who knows what kind of magical or spiritual effects it could be causing [i]right now[./i]"
Stom introduces himself to the stranger. "The name is Stom Flintheart, from Highhelm. Both of us are long way from home it seems!"
Upon noticing the human stone statues, Stom tries to understand if they were Gerhard's companions. "This is an odd place for stone decorations. Do you have any idea how these statues came to be in the jungle?"
Stom is hard-pressed to hide his surprise when Gerhard removes the tarp to show one of the pillars the group has been searching for. Stom was nearly about to disclose the group's current search for these pillars, but Lyra's whisper stops him. He whispers back to Lyra. "How do you want to handle this?"
Gerhard glances over his shoulder at them and gives a casual shrug that borders on indifference. “Oh, those chaps? My assistants.”
He waves vaguely at the petrified explorers frozen in dramatic poses.
“Terribly unfortunate business. We were excavating this very artifact when the thing emitted a frightfully bright flash of blue light. Next thing I know, half the team’s turned into garden ornaments!”
He walks over and raps one of the statues on the shoulder with his knuckle. Clack.
“Solid work, though. Remarkable preservation! I’m considering having them shipped back with the pillar. Adds authenticity to the exhibit, you see.”
Violant just blinks. "And you are... okay with that?"
Gerhard strolls back toward the group, completely unconcerned “Dangerous work, archaeology. They knew the risks when they signed the contract.”
Whispering back to Stom, ”well, I’m not entirely sure he might be genuine, or he might be u see some nefarious influence. All I know for sure is 2 things, we gotta get the pillar destroyed and that I can offer him redemption by the way of My Lady firesword.”
As Pendergast shares what happend to his companions Lyra pipes up, ” seems a terrible fate to be sealed in stone, how do you know this won’t happen again?”
“Ha! Ha ha ha! My dear, excellent question! Splendid instinct for risk assessment!” He strolls over to the tarp-covered pillar and gives it an affectionate pat, as if it were a stubborn mule rather than a dangerous magical artifact.
“Used these poor fellows as cover while I disabled the mechanism. Cracked the thing right here, and that seemed to disable it's defensive magic just enough,"
He straightens with a proud grin.
“So! Perfectly safe now, more or less.”
He grabs the rope tied to the sled and gives it a tug.
“Bit heavy for one man though. Tell you what, help me drag it to the river where my boat’s waiting and I’ll pay you ten gold apiece. Fair bit of coin for a short haul, what?”
Stom pauses and glances at the other party members to see who wants to take the lead on this one. Stom clearly does not.
Looking right at Stom, "Come on now, you're a sturdy looking fellow, grab this rope with me and start pulling,"
Lyra still skeptical of the man continues talking. ”defensive magics? Now that is something, we’ve come across some strange magic in these lands too. You say you disabled it?”
there’s gotta be more to this I know it
She tries to catch eyes with Samael and Violant to see if they can help
Violant casts Detect Magic. as subtly as she can.