The elf's face pales. "...what else was there for us to do? Our people were stolen from us!"
Ick paces around the elf like a predator would, "And Kled did this to you? The druid did this to you?"
"Th-they helped Urik! They watered them when they could've hidden from them! They could've struck against them as they slept--anything!" The elf continues to babble.
"To what end?" Khar asks. "For that matter, what do you expect Urik to do when they learn of your raids? Will you defeat an army of templars? In truth, you are all already dead. Whether it is to this Thri-kreen now, or a soldier's obsidian spear next month, it is coming. Perhaps there is time to save yourself by telling us everything about the druid?"
"there's no profit in all this suffering other than not being the only ones suffering. It's not right." Cale adds
Laurelin moves up the side of the hill to join Ick by the elf, though she keeps an eye open for other look-outs in the area.
"Stupid plan. Kled's going to, what, stand up to a sorcerer-monarch? Tell Hamanu to shove off? Hamanu would just show up with his army and stomp the entire village flat. Then nobody would have access to the oasis, and with Kled turned into a military outpost under Urik's control, your tribe would have nobody left to raid - no juicy under-guarded caravans, because everything would be under the militant flag of Urik," she says. "Kled and the Jura-Dai tribe are both the victims. You are victims of the sorcerer-king Hamanu. But in typical fashion he's got you all riled up taking out your petty vendettas on each other because he's untouchable. Your tribe should be trying to figure out how to get someone into the city to buy back your captive members from the slavers, not poisoning oases and alienating everyone around you."
"You need better leadership," she says, putting one hand on her hip and looking slightly annoyed. "Your current leader is going to get you all killed."
The elf pauses, listening to everyone before nodding. "...we didn't always act like this."
"Our warchief, Tuga-Dai--he used to be a wiser leader than this." He licks his lips a couple of times, trying to put some manner of moisture back into them. "He would lead us on raids against only those caravans we judged to be both weak and wealthy--and we would be sure to shed as little blood as possible."
"That started to change when Tarr-Mak came to our camp..." He swallows. "...an elf of great magical skill. He claimed that his tribe had been swallowed up by the dunes, and would pledge his service to whichever warchief would have him."
"In hindsight, perhaps we should have asked him what really happened to his tribe..."
"...Perhaps there is time to save yourself by telling us everything about the druid?"
"He is a thri-kreen--a mantis warrior by the name of T'klick'chik." He stumbles over the name, his mouth clearly unused to pronouncing a proper Kreen name. "Capturing him was Tarr-Mak's idea--and he convinced Tuga-Dai to agree to it."
Crow glanced over at the others. "Think the new spellcaster is using brain magics?" Something close to fear or concern clouded the massive gladiators eyes at that idea. It was clear that he was less able to defend his brain than his flesh.
"Whatever he is, it sounds like - if this is accurate - he's the root of the problem," says Laurelin. "And if you have problems in your crops, you tear them out by the root."
"What do we do with this one?" she asks the team. "We have to get further in, release the druid, and... sounds like probably confront this influencer, Tarr-Mak."
Ick cocks her head and says, "Would your tribe be less likely to attack if you led us? Can we request an audience with your leaders?"
The elf pales. "Me? A leader? You can't be serious--I'd be a terrible warchief! I can't even keep watch on a canyon road without falling asleep and getting jumped!"
He blinks and starts tapping his foot in thought, the rest of his body starting to fidget. "Although... there is Tuga-Dai's daughter, Jengi..." His expression brightens and he rapidly nods. "Yes, Jengi would be able to get you an audience with him!"
Khar glances at Crow when he asks about the use of magic to influence minds. "Is that a thing? I have only ever heard stories about magic, so I do not know what to expect from those who wield it."
Khar is clearly uncomfortable thinking about the idea. He shifts his weight and knits his brows. He thought about the elf Laurelin controlled using The Way and shuddered. In the stables, the gladiators were controlled and enslaved, but they still held free will. The choice may have been obey or suffer, or even obey or die, but the choice still existed to a certain extent.
Cale nods "it's definitely a thing, both arcane and psionic powers can work on the mind. And yes it would be good to speak to Jengi, is it possible to do this without attracting Tarr-Mak's attention?"
The elf nods. "It should be--as of late, Jengi's been tasked with more scouting duties for the tribe."
"Good. We can intercept this Jengi away from the bulk of the tribe. Approach openly looking to discuss the situation. Hopefully she is not under this Tarr-Mak's spell."
Ick demands, "Take us to her."
The elf nods and starts to lead the party further into the canyon.
The merciless sun bakes the colour off the overhanging outcroppings of rock. The air in the canyon is eerily still and lifeless, doing little to alleviate the heat of the day.
"Now, Jengi was supposed to be scouting down this path..." The elf starts.
His train of thought is interrupted by a shriek of terror that pierces through the sun-burdened air. The elf's eyes widen.
"That's her! JENGI! I'M COMING!" He yells and bolts, running ahead of the group as the canyon begins to turn south!
"Subtle." Khar shakes his head and scans the tops of the cavern, hoping no one is about to rain arrows down on them.
Ick keeps pace with the elf.
Laurelin says, "Unless this is an elaborate set-up, it sounds like tribal loyalties are being tested even now." She rushes to follow, though she isn't as fast as elf or kreen; she settles for jogging alongside Khar.
Crow followed. He had no real idea about what was happening. Tribal infighting seemed as normal as anything else here did. But he also didn't care, so that was fine.
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The group finds it easy enough to follow the elf as he runs headlong through the canyon--he diverts down a side path, running in the direction of the screaming voice.
The source of the voice becomes clear--a brown-haired, fair-skinned elven woman in patchwork tribal leathers comes running from around a southern bend in the canyon. Her blue eyes are wide with fear.
Behind her are a dozen emaciated humanoid figures, their skulls elongated into almost animalistic shapes and wearing what appear to be piecemeal armour made of animal shells on their backs. Their hands and feet are twisted into vicious claws.
"JENGI!" The elf yells.
"FARRAN! GITH!" The elven woman yells back, running as fast as she can towards the party!
Unfortunately, the gith are faster.
Five of them fall on the elven woman...
...and start to viciously rip into her with their claws. She twists and rolls about, but is only able to fend off one--she screams in pain as they start to tear her apart.
Two more gith leap at the elf running to save her...
...with one faceplanting in the sand, but the other raking a claw across his stomach, driving the wind out of him.
The remaining gith begin to swarm up the canyon...
-> Hits AC 5
Laurelin is no stranger to gith raids. She stands her ground and hurls her bola at one of the onrushing gith.
Laurelin's bola flies straight and true, not only pinning the gith's arms to its sides but also knocking it into the dirt!
If she lives, we will have an ally for sure. If she dies... "Careful, Ick! They can leap nearly as far as you!" Khar shouts as he breaks into a full run to cover the distance.
As he comes up on the elf who has so far been helpful, Khar focuses efforts on the gith which landed a blow. As he charges in, he adjusts his grip on the bastard sword and swings too high, forgetting the slouchy stance gith naturally have.
Khar's blade goes high, completely missing the gith he swung at.
Ick rushes behind the two gith and tries to make herself a target.
Moving with something approaching haste, Crow around the rock to come from the north. Rather than laying into the attackers instead the massive gladiator reached into the pack, attempting to grab the wounded woman and haul her onto his shoulders, were she would be safer.
Ick pounces into the thick of the fighting, biting at a gith but only managing to take a chunk of inix shell out of its back armour.
Crow races in and with an almost contemptuous ease, grabs Jengi and hauls her up onto his massive shoulders. The gith surrounding her hiss at the half-giant and prepare to claw at him instead.
Cale draws upon his own psionic potential and focuses on his blade, trying to turn it two-dimensional...
...and as he thinks it, so it becomes. He runs up next to Laurelin.
Farran recovers and tries to manifest a psionic power...
...but as he grabs for a gith, it appears that whatever he was trying to do has failed!
Jengi, being carried upon Crow's shoulder, starts mumbling something panicked...
...and gesticulating wildly. She looks down at the gith surrounding the group and says "Leave us alone! Please!"
Two of the gith adopt a dazed look and start to turn around...
Ick tries to focus her power into her muscles and make them stronger but fails to go plus ultra. She curses in kreen and says to the party, "I can hold them off, get her out of here."
"You heard the lady," Crow rumbled as he tried to boot couple and move away.
Crow's meaty fists rain down on two gith, one punch snapping its neck like a dry twig and the other crushing its pelvis into powder!
-> Hits AC 15
Laurelin closes in and swings her club at one of the gith, missing wildly.
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Khar hesitates. He feels a compulsion to obey Ick without question, but feels that standing beside her is the right thing. He growls and lashes out at the gith nearest Crow. "I will help clear the path, then we go, together."
Khar's longer blade is swatted aside by the gith--but when it does so, it exposes its soft underbelly for a follow-up thrust from his short blade. The gith falls to the dirt, dead from a precise stab.
Cale races in to engage one of the gith coming up on Crow's flank!
He rams his psionically-enhanced blade right into the gith's neck, taking it off and sending fountains of blood spurting everywhere.
Farran grabs at the gith stuck in the bola and tries to manifest a psionic power again...
...and yet again, it fails to manifest itself. He spits out a curse in Elven. "Why isn't this working?!"
The bound gith snarls and tries to rip out of the bola...
...but makes no progress.
Of the gith by the canyon corner, two of them go into a full retreat. The remaining gith lunge at the thri-kreen, half-giant and elf...
...and one gith manages to rake a bleeding wound onto Crow's calf.
Jengi holds still, focusing more on not falling off of Crow.
Laurelin squints and concentrates on the gith entangled in her bola, reaching out with her mind to hear the blood music rushing through its veins and slowing... slowing... slowing...
The gith growls, then whimpers, then starts to snore.
Grunting at the scratch, Crow ignored the wound entirely, simply turning and walking away. The others could slow them down for a few seconds, he could pop the girls on a tall rock or something, and then go back to smash.
Khar finds his current strategy effective against these goth raiders and continues his assault, intent on breaking their will to fight any further.
Ick rips one gith apart with claw and mandible, while Khar races in and brutally puts down two more--bisecting one from shoulder to hip and impaling the other through its skull.
Cale swings his two-dimensional blade once again!
He swings wildly and ends up dropping his blade. It snaps back into its full three-dimensional state.
The remaining gith squawk and start running in a full retreat down the canyon!
Crow watched the enemy break and run. Smarter than they looked. We kept watching for now. "Want down now?" he asked the girl on his shoulders. "Might come back soon."
The frightened and injured elf on Crow's shoulder nods. "Maybe somewhere with fewer gith corpses?"