[IC] The Hammer of the Barren Coast [4E]

[Felhammer]

The minotaur strides forward into the dry riverbed. He comes to a stop in the middle and drives his spear seep into the earth. "We were once brothers but your king abandoned my people. I am Faranak, cousin of King Govromm. I will not allow you - agents of a foreign land - to invade our realm, to pervert the minds of our people and to steal from us that which is our's. He snatches his spear and holds it at the ready. "I will defend this land with my life, should it come to that!"

[Ridai]

Mistletoe

"We are here to deliver a message and to look for lost scouts. Are you telling me your entire kingdom is scared of a piece of parchment, and four people looking for their own," Mistletoe says, back to her hoarse voice. If this is the reaction to four people just wanting to deliver a scroll, the pixie has trouble understanding how this kingdom is supposed to function in the case of an actual threat, expecting the tight-wound minotaur to simply explode from all the pressure inside when faced with such a situation.

[Felhammer]

The minotaur looks the Pixie over and nods. "I hear your words. A week ago, we were kin. Tomorrow, we may well be enemies... But today... I am willing to gamble on peace. Swear a blood oath that you will not harm or befoul my clan and I will take you to my King."

[Inspectre]

Sss'nock's belief in peace and unity had faded over the years of struggle and the near extinction of his clan.
It was not surprising to him therefore that the Mahara were now fracturing after landing in this new land, merely that it happened this quickly.
Still, it was encouraging to see that the rift was not so wide yet that this minotaur brave did not attack them on sight and was willing to listen to reason.

"I ssswear that I come sssolely as messsenger to your King. I will not harm nor act againssst your people until my message isss delivered and I return to the Mahara. But I will defend myssself."

Sss'nock clarified, staring intently back at the minotaur as he delivered this last statement. If necessary to satisfy the oath, he will prick his left claw on one of the tines of his trident, allowing several drops of his blood to drip down into the stream that marked this new "kingdom's" borders.

[Felhammer]

Faranak nods in agreement, "The oath is sworn. I will hold you - and your companions - to it." The minotaur then hops up onto the far bank of the dry river and starts walking north.

After a small walk, you come to a small village of yurts and tents. Many minotaurs walk about the village, as well as a large number of frog-men, all of whom have thick necks and bulbous orange eyes. They croak and groan and language you have never heard before. Faranak sees that you have noticed the frogs, "These are King Govromm's new allies - the Brglglr Tribe. We chanced upon them while exploring the wilderness. Their Chieftess - Grgbbl - and the King became fast..." He trails off for a moment then quietly adds, "Friends..." He shakes his head then continues, "The Brglglr Tribe know the terrain well and have helped this village thrive.

One of the frog men waddles up to the party. He wears a crocodile headdress and wields a gnarled staff surrounded by shimmering blue orbs. "Grglrm splurles! I am Bmurglbr, grand shaman of my tribe. I assume you are friends of Faranak!" He looks each of Maharan Brave over but his gaze settles on Mistletoe. The frog's eyes bulge out in excitement as he licks his meaty chops, "You are so.... Small... And delicate... Tell me little one, are there more of you? Do your people make up a large part of the Mahara? Or are you the lone survivor of Van... Vam... Vamhuuwaaa...?" He looks over to Faranak to correct his pronunciation.

"Vamwe."

"Vamwe! I would have gotten there eventually. Your language is so strange and alien to me." Bmurglbr smiles politely as his gaze returns to Mistletoe, "Were your people wiped out by the Vamwe? You must tell me everything about your people. I am fascinated."

Spoiler: Bmurglbr

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[Blackhawk748]

Grulgar

Grulgar looks down at Bmurglbr, his brows furrowing at the frogman. He enjoyed the enthusiasm, but... he seemed a bit rude.

"Shaman Bmurglbr, I understand that you may be curious but asking such a question of most of the Vamwe would be considered highly insulting and disrespectful, particularly after only just meeting them. You must understand that the events you ask about are very fresh as are the scars, so picking at them is painful."

He paused for a bit to let that sink in.

"However, if you wish to know I would be willing to speak to you of my own experiences and what I know of the others after we deliver our message."

[Ridai]

Mistletoe

Mistletoe floats after the group. Seeing the frog people reminds the pixie of talking with the frogs at ponds, and getting passing tall folk to kiss them in hopes of turning them into tall folk princes. Ah, the laughter they shared at the sputtering and spitting. Of course, there were no frog princes in the forest. Anyone who earned the wrath of a fey to the point where they were turned into a frog usually simply got eaten or trampled by some other animal, or even other Vamwe, something the fairfolk watched with increasing glee as the Vamwe started not to just visit or trespass, but invade.

The names do sound familiar. They are pretty normal to Mistletoe, though other Mahara have told pixiekind that the names frogs gave themselves sound like gargling honey or clearing one's voice. Terribly rude towards the poor frogs, but the tall folk trying to imitate the sounds always makes for a good laugh for her kind.

Mistletoe is brought out of her strolling thoughts when a frog person starts to look at her. For a moment, she thinks his tongue is going to snap for her, leading to a momentary surge in heat (frogs at home also tried this, but they were usually too slow or dumb. And if a pixie got caught and wasn't tricksy enough to get out, well, they can't all be winners). However, instead of tongue lashes, there or lip flaps. And a lot of them, slinging questions. Mistletoe's eyes begin a piercing stare, with the embers within fixed on the frog man.

"Vamwe tried to take our forest, and either capture or kill us, sometimes for sport. When there was nowhere in the forest to run left, most who remained fled, while Taken like me burned down our home and the hateful Vamwe within, making them scream as their flesh charred, their eyes popped, and their insides boiled," Mistletoe's hoarse whispery voice relays, with an almost serene evenness to it. There is a short pause. "We also taste vile. Makes you burn from the inside out, too," she adds in a deadpan way, as a puff of smoke with a few embers within it escapes her mouth.

[Inspectre]

Sss'nock blinks in surprise at the presence of the frog people here in the village, openly moving about in considerable numbers.
Given the hostility they had encountered from a native of this land yesterday, the lizardman would expect similar behavior from other inhabitants on this land.
But given the factions within the Mahara that even now were pulling apart further, perhaps the people of this land were not as united in their violence as the Vamwe.
Given they had an inhabitant of this land right in front of them, and part of Sss'nock's message was going to be a warning about the dolphin rider anyway, this seemed like an opportunity to possibly learn more about their foe from the other day.

"Greetingsss, Bmurglbr! It isss good to know that not all people of thisss land are sssso hossstile! We encountered sssomeone who attacked usss from ambussh usssing magic on our way here. Ssssome creature riding a dolphin, who enchanted crabsss to gigantic sssize. Are you familiar with who that could have been?"

[dariathalon]

Gorvak

At first Gorvak is a little annoyed at this frog-man's interruption in their mission. His questions for Mistletoe seemed unusual at first too, but Gorvak reminded himself that as unusual as these frog people seemed to him, his party was probably equally as unusual to them. Gorvak moved up close to Mistletoe anyway, just to make sure she is safe.

"Grand Shaman Bm..." Gorvak coughed through his horrible mispronunciation of the name, trying to cover it up. "Have your people been in this area for long? Maybe you could help us solve a mystery. We are not the first people sent this way by the Wild King. Scouts were sent up this way and part of our mission is to discover their whereabouts. Did they happen to encounter your tribe at all?"

[Felhammer]

Shaman Bmurglbr blinks his left eye, then his right as Mistletoe describes her experience with the Vamwe. He looks visibly stunned and awkward. He manages to blurt out, "I, uhh, did not realize..." before segueing quickly to Sss'nock, "OH! YES! You speak of the Undine! They are a sea people who live in the ocean. They are reclusive and isolationist, quick to anger, long to forgive. They do not like newcomers to these shores. They often attack seemingly at random... Until they grow accustomed to your existence. Then they merely keep you at arms length.

Turning to Gorvak, the Bmurglbr states, "We encountered one of your scouts. He was beset by dire wasps in the Mrggglglr badlands. We saved the scout but not before the wasp's poison had coursed through is veins. Although we saved him, the poison stole his vision. We then chanced upon the King of Frost as he was setting up camp here. We offered the scout to the King as a sign of friendship. From what I understand, the scout is still here in the camp."

Grulgar then speaks, to which the shaman nods, "Indeed. Go, speak with the King. We will have more opportunities to talk afterwards."

Faranak leads the party to the largest yurt in the village. The yurt is adorned with traditional blue and white blankets. The smell of roasting boar permeates the air as you near the hut. Faranak lifts the door flap and ushers the party inside. The party is confronted with an imposing 7 foot tall minotaur with chisseled abs and buldgeing pecs sitting atop a finely carved wooden throne. The minotaur wears a cold iron crown beset with fingernail-sized rubies and peals. The king's left hand rests atop a finely crafted minotaur-sized greataxe, also made from cold iron. The king is flanked by two minotaur women who wear veils (as is tradition in the Frosttotem tribe). The woman on his left wears a white veil, while the woman on his left wears a blue veil. In the center of the yurt is a great fire, with a large boar slowly roasting over the flames. No guards can be seen within the yurt.

Faranak is first to speak, "My king, these are... Ambassadors from the Wild King. Sent to deliver a message and to inquire about the Wild King's scouts." Your escort then looks to the party and motions for them to take the floor.

Spoiler: The King

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[dariathalon]

Gorvak

Gorvak steps cautiously forward, seeing that none of his other companions are taking the floor. "We bring greetings from the Wild King. I am Gorvak, and these are my companions." Gorvak gestures to each of them, giving their names. "Your cousin speaks the truth of our mission. We do have a message from the Wild King, but first, I would like to inquire about the scouts that were sent this way. As we were making our way to you, we ran into the shaman of the Brgl... tribe." Gorvak does his best to pronounce the tribe's name, but his tongue obviously doesn't have the dexterity needed to wrap around the odd mix of consonants. "He told us that they had recovered one of the Wild King's scouts and that you'd been caring for him here ever since. Thank you for that. Do you have any other of our scouts here? Or perhaps have more information on what might have happened to them? We would gladly take them back to our tribes to see to their care when we leave."

[Ridai]

Mistletoe

"Brglglr," Mistletoe's hoarse voice helps Gorvak as he stumbles. Other than this, nothing is heard from the pixie shrouded in black, having chosen to stand on the ground and thus practically disappearing from the view of most between her companions. All important things have been said, and restraint is needed here.

[Inspectre]

Sss'nock listened intently to the frogman's words, considering his information just as important to their mission as the scouts' fate.
It was troubling to think that Govramm had managed to establish himself so quickly, with land, knowledge, and native allies already at his disposal.
Was the Wild King's caution in approaching this new land going to prove disastrous to the Mahara, or did he foresee the rapid unraveling of the Mahara if allowed to do as Grovak had done and rush out to claim whatever was near to-hand within this new land?
But there was always a cost to forging alliances, and although these . . . Brglglr . . . people seemed friendly, some of the Vamwe had also seemed friendly at first.

Rousing himself from his dark thoughts, Sss'nock regarded the new self-crowned king cautiously, attempting to take the minotaur lord's measure while the others talked.

Spoiler: Insight

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Yeah, it's a long shot . . .
(1d20+5)[10]

[Blackhawk748]

Grulgar

Grulgar looked around at the Yurt that housed the king. He had worked fast, clearly, but he seemed to be a bit caught up in his own ego. Grulgar decided that remaining silent would be best.

[Felhammer]

The King slouches in his chair as he munches on an apple. He seems completely disinterested in what the party is saying.

The female minotaur wearing a blue veil states, "The scout was poisoned. His survival stood on a knife's edge."

The woman in the white veil continues, "Praise be to the Great Moose that he was guided back to health by our shamans. We discovered the headless corpses of three other scouts. Each neck wound was cauterized. The smell of brimstone permeated the air around their bodies. Their heads could not be located. We believe local tribesmen may have killed them and taken their heads as a show of force. We buried the scouts in the wilds, per our people's custom. The Great Moose guided their souls beyond the river Kuruk to the boreal forests of Mohi, where they shall find eternal serenity among the elder trees and the spirit folk."

"We freely return the wounded scout to your care," states the woman in blue. "We do this as a sign of friendship, between our realms. It is a kindness that we were not required to show. Remember well our gift for our benevolence is not boundless."

Spoiler: Sss'nock

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You get the impression that the King is trying to appear disinterested and aloof but he is, in fact, quite interested in what you have to say.

[Ridai]

Mistletoe

White veil seems to be the "good" one. Blue the "bad". The flame stirs when Mistletoe hears what happened to the scouts, fitting into the pattern of these lands.

Feeling they are expected to respond, the pixie has no idea what pompous kings like to hear or be adressed as. It is most likely that the customs of the fey will not be met with favor, and at the same time, she has never had the patience for vile politics. So when a bit of awkward silence threatens to creep into the place, she offers a "Thank you"

That seems to work most of the time among tall folk, and she even adds a bit of a bow (even if her opposites probably won't see much of it). Seeking to move things right along, the pixie looks up to her companions. "The message?" she says to get the thing passed, and to get through what may be a lot of wrath in the near future.

[dariathalon]

Gorvak

Gorvak gives Mistletoe a glance, at her request for the message. He understood her desire to get this over with, he wasn't much of a diplomat either. But if the Chief reacts as badly as expected, Gorvak wanted to make sure they would be able to leave immediately if needed. And he wasn't leaving without that scout if it was possible.

He turns back to the two women, "Thank you for your kindness. We understand, no one's friendship is boundless. With that in mind, perhaps the scout could be brought to us now. We'd like to take the responsibility of his care from you as soon as possible. No reason to tread on your good will any longer than necessary, and I'm sure he'd appreciate knowing that we are here for him."

[Inspectre]

Sss'nock grimaces a bit as Gorvak requests that the surviving scout be immediately brought to them.
There was no good reason to put off delivering the Wild King's message unless . . . ah, unless Gorvak thought that the message's delivery would be swiftly followed with them being driven out of the minotaur camp or worse.
The big paladin was not as dumb as he looked, it seemed, although if matters took a turn here for the worst Sss'nock knew they would have to be cleverer still to get out of the camp alive.

The fate of the scouts was yet another worry, however.
While the taking of their heads and the lingering scent of brimstone meant nothing to the lizardman, the differences from their own surprise attack suggested that there was another group beyond these Nadine.
Dolphin-riding crabomancers, frog men, and these sulfurites . . . the Promised Land was starting to seem awfully full of neighbors for the Mahara, most of them unfriendly.