If you think you can make use of it Cort by all means.
Sentis hands the satchel to duelist.
and of course no one but Doc should have the healing salve
hands over the gord to the dwarf.
"Them frogs might eat em flies if they shows up again!"
"I kent think o aother us fer big frogs"
@Doc
"How many salves uses we gots Doc?"
Blaze wakes up just before dawn, and meditates upon the time most sacred to his goddess, polishing and cleaning his scimitar as well.
He watches Cort practicing, and noticing the other swordsman is utilizing some of his techniques calls out "Getting better kid, we'll make a decent duelist out of you yet" He says in a good-natured fashion. He jumps down from the pile of rocks he was sitting on and walks over to Doc.
"Good to have you back with us, do us a favor though and lay off the bottle, will ya?" He says laughing.
He then grabs up his backpack "I'm ready. Let's move out as soon as possible"
Darkbiter spends most of the remaining afternoon and evening by himself, in quiet contemplation. When morning comes, he looks even more bestial than he had before, and you notice his hands are now claw like. He sits down to breakfast quiet and intrigued by the bag of frogs in waiting. "Interesting trick. Anything notable overnight? I fear I was a bit focused my training."
Slightly taken back by his friends claws; Kabal asked the ranger
more in touch with your primal self Dark? We're all looking a little more dangerous this morning. I heard a strange laughter coming from the jungle during my watch but nothing else.
"Good to have you back Doc, and would someone mind treating this wound before it slows me down?" He points to a particularly painful monkey bite. "You are after all the Doc."
Rolling his eyes at the group's wisecracks, Doc shrugs with good humor. "Yeah, yeah. Laugh it up. Couple days memory loss's nothin'. Once back on ship, the mixmaster tested'a formulae on me tha' made me skin transparent, but no' th' rest o' me."
"'Ere, drink this." Doc says handing Cort a vial. "Wait, neh. This one. Yeh." He says quickly switching the previous vial for another.
Looking at the salve, sniffing it and dropping a single drop of something from another vial onto it and watching the reaction, Doc shrugs. "Some kinda quick heal gunk. Probly made from troll's blood. Looks like it won't last long, maybe a minute. Probably a few hours wortha natural healing every few seconds. I say we let one'a you frontliners carry it."
As you set out in the morning towards the ruins, Vankerman is consumed by an almost palpable longing. It's clear he has been looking forward to this moment for some time. Sangoma is caring for Cpl Valorious, but the remaining porters have joined you for the trek.
Part way along the trek, you hear some whistles coming from the side of the trail. A couple of the porters make to move in that direction.
Kaavel looks around at the wonder of the jungle as the group travels to the ruins.
Grusk looks tha way
Perception
and joins Darkbiter in being stealthy
Stealth
"Thanks Doc, glad to have you back." Cort flexes his arm a couple times, making sure Doc's potion didn't have any side effects. "Did I taste whiskey in that? Is that regulations?" Cort grins at the feeling returning to his new, pink skin.
As the column begins to move Cort packs up, throws his backpack over his shoulder and starts moving. His eyes scan the trees carefully, cursing how difficult it is to pick anything out of the shuffle. As Blaze passes the swordlord catches his eye and jerks his head, indicating they should speak. "I think Vankerman's getting too eager." He whispers urgently. "I can't see a damn thing in this jungle and he keeps picking up the speed. I want to get to the glory and cash as much as the next merc, but maybe you should have a talk with him. I'd rather we moved a bit more carefully, particularly in light of the obstacles we've seen recently." Cort pushes a lock of blonde hair out of his eyes, under his cap, and looks at the other squaddies. "Also, you see what happened to Ugly? Guy gives me the shivers sometimes. I'm good at keeping low, but he disappears when he doesn't want to be seen. And now he's got claws. Guess I'm just glad he's on our side."
Sentis trails the party and gets lost in the insect chirps and bird calls in the jungle.
Two of the porters suddenly break off from the main expedition and head into the jungle. You aren't close enough to restrain them, but they are still in view.
Darkbiter moves to chase them down, muttering very quietly under his breath in orc, "Do these fools have a death wish after everything we've been through?"
"Did I taste whiskey in that? Is that regulations?"
"It be a stretch t' call it whiskey, but yeh. Liquer's pretty much th' solvent base I use fer everythin'. Even ammo. Th' commander likes me, so 'e lets it slide long 's I do th' job ah'm paid for."
Grusk moves with Darkbiter.....
"Seems were in fer a shift in course lads, steady tha main sail an bring her about."
Grusk moves with Darkbiter.....
"Seems were in fer a shift in course lads, steady tha main sail an bring her about."
Blaze nods his agreement at Cort's comments "I'll see what I can do, and yea, Dark does seem a little scarier and bestial, but that's ok by me, s'long as he's a Steel Wolf still."
Upon seeing the two porters veer off he shouts "By the Dawnflower, are they mad?? Come on Cloak, we better help them" With that he unsheathes his scimitar and runs after the two Half-Orcs.
"Oh hell..." Cort draws his blade, hacking his way through some of the brush to catch up. "I hate this jungle. Shelyn, give me the beauty of a wide rolling plain, or of the mountains like my home. This place has too much the beauty of a scorpion." Lightly touching the symbol of Shelyn at his breast he moves alongside Blaze. "If it's a fight, I'll move behind, and we can cut them down."
As you set off to follow the porters, some spears flash out of a nearby tree at the party.
@ Darkbiter: for
@ Blaze: for
@ Cort:
Tracking back the path of the spears you see three biloko drop from the branches of a nearby tree.
Catching sight of the spear in just the right moment, Cort snaps his blade up and cuts it out of the air. "Contact!" The swordlord yelled as he heard the other two spears strike his squadmates.
Moving nimbly forward, the young man makes a daring move, leaping over the biloko to get them between himself and the squad, sword snapping out to attack as he moves over.
Darkbiter simply looks at his assailant with a "are you really that suicidal?" look as he steps forward, and unleashes a full attack of bite, claw, claw.
Tracking back the path of the spears you see three biloko drop from the branches of a nearby tree.
Blaze grunts as a spear hits, but barely hurts him. He then charges into a flanking position with Cortland, and lashes out with his scimitar
Charge Attack
[ooc]I'll just use a double move to set Blaze up for the flank then. No attack for me.[\ooc]
Sentis followed Cort into the brush and was yet again amazed at the mans speed when he cut the hurtling spear in half. The two peices went to either side of him as he drew his blade and rushed at the biloko on the left?
-
-
Darkbiter will be charging.
The squad easily runs down the Biloko, cutting them down simply as though they were strands of ripened wheat. Obviously the creatures must be a menace to common folk and the ill-prepared, but not for a trained military outfit.
Searching the bodies you find no valuables, just a few small sized short-spears.
Continuing on from the ambush, you travel for another few hours through the jungle. After an hour you notice that you pass a row of hibiscus flowers that seems to be cultivated to grow in an orderly line.
You reach your destination in the early afternoon, Musangi pulling up short while you are still in the jungle. "The ruin should be about one hundred paces from here, should we continue on or do you want to scout ahead?"
"Nearly there men."
Blaze pauses for a few moments thinking "Now that we're here, I think its time us trained professionals took over. We should indeed send a scout forward at least to make sure there's nothing unpleasant waiting at the entrance." Turning to his squadmates he says "Think we should set up a defensible camp, or just move right in?"
Blaze pauses for a few moments thinking "Now that we're here, I think its time us trained professionals took over. We should indeed send a scout forward at least to make sure there's nothing unpleasant waiting at the entrance." Turning to his squadmates he says "Think we should set up a defensible camp, or just move right in?"
"Having a defensible camp to fall back to would be a good thing. It would also give those not going in a safe place to wait."
Sounds good to me. Are we a democracy since Icy isnt here? One of you should take the lead to cut down on the possibility of confusion.
Sentis then turns to Vankerman.
Can you use your trick and clear us some space for a camp? We'll need a good sized area Id say.
"Multiple tasks then, A small group ken scout ahead an Doc ken help set a camp, I has seen how well he does jus tha an ave every confidence in tha."
Nudges DB
"Those are some impressive claws, yah goes fer tha jugular an I'll crack mah axe intah tha spine. Did they say scout ahead?"
"My 'trick' can clear a small area if you deem it necessary, though the porters would need to clear the rest"
Well, clear us the small area for now. I dont think the porters should be hacking at the jungle while our 2 scouts are trying to be sneaky. when they get back then we can make a larger camp.
"What can I say? When you the let the jungle in, it can have some strange effects. At any rate, let's go give this temple a look see shall we?"
Kaavel watches as the others in the squad get attack than fight back.
"What can I say? When you the let the jungle in, it can have some strange effects. At any rate, let's go give this temple a look see shall we?"
"Indeed, exactly mah thoughts!"
Stealth
Perception
Darkbiter and Grusk melt into the jungle like the rain itself....
The Qadiran begins to help clear space and set up a camp. "As of right now, I don't think we need an actual leader. We've done this enough that it should be almost automatic, once inside temple it might be best to have one voice to keep things focused and together."
The ruin itself is relatively unremarkable from the outside. It is a simple square pavillion that although overgrown seems in relatively good shape for the period of time that it is meant to have been sitting fallow in the jungle.
Emboldened by the lack of opposition you stealth into the pavillion itself. There is one entrance and the interior is plain barring one wall. There is a hole in the centre of the wall that is surrounded by text in a language you don't understand.
The remainder of the squad looks to make camp. There is a thick bamboo thicket nearby that should serve as a natural barrier, so you build up the camp adjacent to that. Vankerman uses the power of his machete to clear the initial area, and then the remaining porters start to do the hard work.
"This whole "bells an' tripline" shtick is getting to be SOP in this place. I'm gonna rig up somethin' t' speed th' process."
"Looks all clear."
Looks around at every detail
knowledge nature
"Ready to head back?"
"Let's do a quick check for tracks first. Get some idea of movement in area. I'll go around to the left; you go to the right." Darkbiter starts to do a quick perimeter sweep before returning to the camp.
Grusk and Darkbiter return....
@Doc
"Tha issa good trip-gear"
"Now tah find a place tah set watch from an not be seen by tha man in tha mask."