Palila nods at Jampo. "That is a good idea, nobody else on the boat to get hurt. We can tie the ostrich horses in the middle so they don't fall into the river. But what if the pirates don't attack?"
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"Do you think they are friends with the hipposhark? Maybe they are hurting it to make it do what they want. Maybe we could save it," Palila suggests to the samurai.
Palila watches Kasom swim away, bemused. Was he talking about us? she wonders. "Was he talking about us?" she asks, "I am not a children!"
Palila whispers back to Tik from behind the curtain of her hair. Spoiler: "But why would Kasom do that to the captain?"
"Honor. Money. So confusing. This is why I talk to Siba." Palila studies the toes peeking out from the ends of her sandals, sighing. Her hanging hair obscures her face.
Palila turns to Jampo in confusion. "But the captain is paying this big muscle man to protect his boat. If we beat the pirates for him, why wouldn't he pay us? Then we would pay him back for passage, so it would all be free to both of us? I don't understand money," she frowns.
"Oh, we will just do away with the pirates and hippo shark and cross for free," Palila smiles at the big man, "Then you won't have to worry! You should stay on the shore, because it sounds like they are very afraid of you. They won't be afraid of us, but we will surprise them."
"I didn't think you needed muscles to bend. I thought it had more to do with what was between your ears and in your heart," Palila chimes in, uninvited. "But then, I'm no bender."
"Well, then, let's go talk to this captain man." Palila tugs Siba into motion and strides towards the ferry with a determined air. "Spirits are... very much themselves," Palila says to Jampo as they walk, "And you are right; even unfriendly ones are not always hostile. It's like... I guess like a snake with poison here. They do not necessarily want to bite you, but they will if you make a mistake. And sometimes, you don't even know a snake is there, so you make a mistake and they bite you... but they didn't understand that you didn't see them. Does that make sense? And many of the spirit's missions and interests, we don't understand. It can be very hard to communicate."
"Spirits? They're just like people. Only see-through. And they don't look like us. And they won't always talk. And they think different." Palila considers a moment, idly scratching Siba's ear. "I guess they aren't really like people. But we don't know it's a spirit; that's just something Jampo said. Maybe the ferryers will know more."
Palila squints at Jampo. "Spirit creatures can be very terrible. If it is attacking the ferry, which has been running peaceably until now, it may not be as nice as you think! We should ask the ferrymen what they have seen. That will help us understand what we are up against."
"Money for protection? I don't understand. Will they throw money at it?" Palila scrunches her face in confusion, then shrugs, smiling. "No matter. Siba and Karoo must take the ferry across, so the ferry must go across. I will go with them and protect the ferry from the creature. And I will not throw money at it! I will bonk it on its nose!" She twirls one of her bonking sticks. "Most things do not like being bonked on the nose," she explains to the father, gravely.
Palila slides down Uupa's side, giving him a pat and her thanks. Seeing no apparent danger, she dashes to Siba to be certain the great beast is unhurt. On the way, she encourages the fallen Taikahana with a quick, "Don't worry; I'm sure you will win next time!" She comforts the bird-beast, finding it and its gear in fine fettle, then leads it to the ferry conference.
She listens to the conversation but says nothing, feeling that Taikahana's question is adequate (for now) and very to the point.
"Oh no! Is Siba OK?" Palila peers worriedly over Uupa's side, trying to see her mount without falling off.
After she carefully shows Taikahana how to control the ostrich horse (as if he has never ridden before), Palila practically skips over to Uupa to pat his nose and clamber on board, carrying her pack and weapons to relieve Siba of that weight. When everyone is settled and they ascend, Palila laughs with delight. "I was always jealous of Pima being able to fly, and now I can do it, too! Everything looks so different from above! Look, I can see Jian's house from here!" All the exclamation points are obvious.
"You may ride Siba if you like, Taikahana-san. I would not mind flying like a bird for a while, and Siba is well-trained." Palila closes her eyes, as if already feeling the wind streaming through her hair. "Maybe we can pet birds as they fly by."
"Master Jampo, if Uupa would condescend to carry some of our mounts' baggage, Mica and I could ride while everyone else flies. That would give us scouts both on the ground and in the air, and we would make better time than if we walk," Palila suggests with some hesitation.
"I am unharmed, thank you. Should we move on? I think you shamed them, but they might return with reinforcements if they are of low character," Palila suggests, calling Siba to her and scratching the creature's ears and the base of its beak. Siba's feathers, which had been puffed in alarm, slowly flatten to their normal, calmer state.
"Are you well, Taikahana-san?" Palila asks softly, still kneeling by the fallen firebender. Seeing him stir, she rises and wordless offers a hand to help him up, following Mica's example a little uncertainly.
With a glare at the fallen enemies, Palila dashes over to Taikahana's sprawled and motionless form to check his signs of life.
Ah, it's fist, not blast. So the damage is actually unarmed (monk's 1d6) plus kinetic fist for 1d6 (which will increase when kinetic blast damage increases), with the staff thrown in for flavor? Dang, that's sweet. These builds are tough! I mean, +1d6 will cost you lots of gold (of course, that's every attack you can use the magic weapon for). I need to study up my build to get the optimal combos. Question: martial flexibility gives me the ability to add a combat feat for which I qualify for 1 minute. I have brawler's flurry, which specifies that I "have two weapon fighting whenever using (certain attacks). Does that mean I can grab Improved Two Weapon Fighting using martial flexibility as long as I am using the appropriate attacks? I don't actually have TWF, per se. As an academic question, what CR baddies are you using against these builds? I'm beginning to think I should have used gestalt for F&FH.
Seeing that Jampo has decided to keep her opponent busy, Palila takes a short couple of steps to face the only unengaged member of the attackers. Siba trails behind so he can continue to guard.
She makes a swift punching motion that whips the length of the tonfas forward to pop her opponent in the head, not pulling her punches since this woman spit a gout of real fire at one of her companions.
"Defend," Palili snaps at Siba, then circles the leader, drawing the tonfa slung at her belt and moving in to menace him. "Call them off or I strike," she threatens in a calm but firm voice, weapons held down the lengths of her forearms.
Provisional die rolls if needed:
"Triads," Palila murmurs so the group can hear, "But I don't know why they would come out of the city. They aren't usually off their turf unless fighting for more. Be careful. Don't want to provoke a gang unnecessarily, but don't let them take advantage."
Palila has Jampo help her carry the vegetable trimmings to the critters while Jian cooks dinner. She makes a game of tossing morsels to them, while trying to slip some extra-nutritious bits to poor Karoo. She's quiet during dinner unless directly addressed, rather at a loss for what to say in the company of so many benders. ~*~*~*~ In the morning, she tidies her room and dresses for the road, packing her things carefully before emerging for breakfast so as not to delay the group when they decide to leave. She packs the relics away carefully in the midst of clothing so they are kept safe from jolts on the road (or on ostrich-horse-back). Seeing Jian in her formal robes, Palila senses a ceremony of some sort and greets her mentor with a respectful bow, watching attentively as the gifts are presented to the benders. When Jian stops before her, Palila is a bit confused, but automatically reaches to accept the glove. She pulls it on in the middle of Jian's explanation, flexing her fingers, then making a fist and smacking it into the open palm of her other hand. To her surprise and pleasure, the glove is constructed to be flexible and not at all binding in normal motion, but the craftily interlocking plates inside the leather somehow stiffen into a formidable surface under impact. She looks up at the Grand Lotus with a pleased smile. "Many thanks, Grand Lotus Beifong. I can truly stand with my companions now," she says with another bow. I hope, she keeps to herself.
"Chop the apples... then we can take the scraps out to the animals. The ostrich horses DO get some. I assume Uupa will eat fruit and vegetables? He won't eat Siba, will he?" Palila asks of Uupa's master.
Palila looks startled at her famous guest's offer of assistance. "Um... sure. You can clean and chop the cabbages." As she sets out a cutting board and knife and holds out a heavy-looking canvas bag to Tikaani, she suddenly smiles at the waterbender, teeth very white in her tanned face. "Thanks."
With Mica's ostrich horse and Siba in tow, Palila leads the illustrious visitors through the streets into an older, windier party of town to the Grand Lotus's home, stopping at a couple of street vendors along the way to finish the grocery shopping and to pick up a bunch of flowers. She shows Mica where to stable her beast, leaving Siba there as well, and hauls the purchases into the kitchen, emerging immediately to show everyone to a room. "I don't know if Jian had particular rooms in mind, but we've cleaned them all just in case. Take whatever pleases you. The facilities are here and here" She indicates a couple of doors to the water closets. "I will be in the kitchen if you feel like company when you're done unpacking and refreshing yourselves." Once in the kitchen, she first finds a pottery vase to hold the spray of yellow and red flowers, and sets it in the middle of the table. She continues preparing for the meal, laying each place with plates and cutlery. The plates are all glazed pottery, matching but with each piece unique in its design or glaze. When the table is prepared, she begins cleaning the vegetables, knowing that Jian will want to do the cooking but will appreciate the grunt work being done.
Palila holds up the bags to show Jian that there's plenty of food, then nods to the group. "We should fetch our ostrich horses," she tells Moesashi, then frowns at Jampo. "Can your air bison walk as well as fly? Or would you prefer to leave him here? Jian's house is not too terribly far. He might have trouble squeezing through the streets, though." "I need to make a couple of stops on the way to Jian's, but they will not take long," she adds, leading the way to fetch Siba and load him up with groceries.
"If we all stay with Jian-sama tonight, we will have time to plan our journey and ensure we have supplies," Palila hints gently in Mica and Tikaani's direction, "It would be very sensible."
"I didn't say that," Palila replies in a soft voice and looking at the ground, "I would be fine walking, though, or riding Siba instead of flying. If it would work out. I am accustomed to walking." She trails off into silence.
Palila looks relieved. "That would be fine with me. The air bison can scout really well, I imagine. Can we move quickly enough on the ground, though?"
"So, what do we need to do before we go?" Palila seems somewhat taken aback that they could be leaving at any second. Then a sudden thought strikes. "We're taking your flying bison? What about Siba? Will there be room for him? He's not really full grown yet, either." She looks pleadingly at Jampo.
Palila scrutinizes the map for a moment. "It may be better to go to Omashu first, then see if anybody can point the way to the desert tribe. They may move around some. Heading for the Si Wong first could waste a lot of time in fruitless search," she suggests quietly.
Palila takes cues from her mentor, as usual, applauding for her teammates as they are introduced. She finds the introductions very interesting, boiling down their qualifications to what is probably the most important points. She lets the moment when her own name is announced flow past her, not even bowing so she does not draw attention to herself. She knows that the benders are the stars of the team. She feels she should be sad at parting from Jian, but the excitement of going off on her own is undeniable. Palila finds she is very much looking forward to the trip, though she tries to keep her emotions level, as she has been taught.
"I agree with the airbender," Palila pipes up rather suddenly, "You can trust us to do whatever we must to find the Avatar. The benders all know how important this is to the world. I know it is important to you, at least. We will do this." She reaches out tentatively to touch Jian's flesh arm in a reassuring pat. You can trust some of us, at least, she thinks, and we will keep the others on course, no matter what.
"Never," Palila responds simply, "Iroh said the White Lotus is my family now. You are my teacher and my mother in this place. I will do as you ask."
Sorry you are sick, MeowselsGM. D:
"Well met, Taikahana," Palila says politely, "Your armor is beautiful. I have seen skeletons dressed so. I was sad that they never made it back home." To Jian, she nods. "Whatever the task, I am at your service. Even if it is getting more cabbages."
Palila glances back briefly to ensure everyone is keeping up and darts back to catch Mica's hand. "Keep together and do not get separated in this crowd, or it will take forever to find you." As they near the stage, she turns back to her compatriots to call, "Look, there she is! The old lady near the stage, with the man in... armor? That's Jian." Her headlong rush to meet her mentor is checked by the sight of an old man selling cabbages. She motions the others forward and stops at the stand, digging for coin and a string bag. Once loaded up with cabbages and apples, she adds the bag to the others she carries and sighs with relief. Mission accomplished. She catches up with the Benders Minus One and bows before Jian. "Here are Mica, Jampo, and Tikaani, three of the Benders you sent for. We met by chance in the markets. I have not seen the fourth. I hope we are not late?" She scans her mentor's face with some anxiety.
"Yes, of course. I left Jian near the stage, so I should be able to find the way back. Let's see... I could see that tall clock from there as well as here, only its face was pointed differently, so we need to go THAT direction." Scrutinizing the buildings as she walks, and changing direction accordingly, Palila leads the group in a slightly zig-zag path to within view of the gaily decorated raised platform. She points in triumph. "There. There is the stage. We should get closer, though..." She slips through the crowd like a fish through the rapids, straight towards the stage. Jian will be so happy! There's supposed to be a fourth, though. We haven't found them yet. The thought was the only damper on the day - that, and the fact that she hadn't been able to get cabbages. And she was sorely tempted to eat the lychees.
"Oh, Jian asked me to pick up a few things. Seems silly to go grocery shopping on a festival day when everything is jammed, but that's Jian: do what needs to be done. We need cabbages, apples,..." Palila rattles off a brief list of groceries. "But whatever we do, we need to be at the main stage before Jian's announcement at one. She was very clear about that - I'm sure it was in your notes, too?" Palila looks at the others for confirmation, then squints up at the sun. "It's probably getting near that time. Maybe we should head to the main stage. I don't want to be late. Jian would be disappointed."
"I'm sure Master Uupa will be safe and happy here in this fine field with all his new friends. I must go pick up a few things before Jian's speech, and I would like to see more of the fair. If anyone else would like to come, I welcome company. We can part ways, too; I am certain we will see each other very soon. Do not miss Jian's speech! She has been..." The girl's mouth snaps shut, cutting off her little speech. "Anyway, I am going to look for a cabbage stand, and maybe some lunch. That unfried dough." Palila's nose wrinkles. "Not the best. No offense meant to your customs."
"He taught the airbenders..." Palila breathes softly, eyes wide and darting along the length and height of the furry bulk, "And he is your teacher as well?" she confirms with Jampo more loudly. After a few moment's consideration, she presents herself to the air bison with a low bow, a respectful - or wary? - distance from the creature. "It is an honor to meet you, Master Uupa. My name is Palila." She backs away and watches the others stroking and scratching the shaggy form, looking quite thoughtful and slightly puzzled.
"But... how does he fly? He looks very solid. The children climbing on him do not bother him. I would guess he does have muscle under the fur. So he is probably heavy - heavier than one of those balloons. And he has no wings. Unless they are under the fur?" Palila looks at Jampo for answers, her face serious.
"You see, Siba? It's not eating the cubs. It won't eat you. They're probably a lot more tender than you, and with fewer feathers," Palila admonishes her mount, trying to hearten herself as well. "Come on! This field is big enough to share." She tugs her companion into motion - he nips her shoulder, possibly as payback for the "tender" remark - and leads him to a field that has other mounts pastured, the circus owner making hay of the occasion by turning his space into a kind of parking lot for livestock. She drops a couple of coins into the hand of an urchin at the gate who claims to be collecting the pasture fees, then trails back to the group, Siba following her along the fence for as long as he can. Palila ignores him and accompanies the rest of the humans to meet Aapu. Uupa. Whatever its name was.
Palila stays right where she is. Siba crouches behind her trying to look small. "Are you sure it's safe?" she calls after Jambo, "Does it eat ostrich horses?" Or people? she adds under her breath.
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