The fighting happened very quickly. Even had she wanted to, Bryony would barely have had a chance to join in, but she did not want to. Her attempts to persuade the dragon had failed, and now the six cultists were dead, in many cases ripped to pieces. The halfling felt sick, and her eyes filled with tears. The only reason she wasn't full on sobbing was because she was sure the dragon would take that as a cue to eat her, another weakling in its eyes. To think she had been excited to see a dragon! Now all she wanted more than anything in the world was for this horrible creature to face justice. Yet even a young dragon posed a huge threat. Even with the five of them they were not likely to come out on top. They would have to live to fight another die.

Bryony gives Jurgen a stricken look. She can't believe they are really going to leave him behind with the horrible green monster. Green dragons are known liars. There is no guarantee the lizard won't just decide to have Jurgen for a snack later. Feeling helpless, the halfling walks over near Kimberley, feeling the need to be close to someone who isn't as big as a house and could kill them in a second with its poison breath.

Syzygy watches Jurgen with admiration. "We shall move with haste and return soon friend…And prove ourselves to Venomfang the Mighty." The last part he adds assuredly. 

He also can't help but feel for Byrony. Syzygy knows she's new-ish to life on the road. He hoped she wouldn't have to witness or  be participant in something like this. But it is what it is and she is strong. 

"Shall we?" Syzygy says as he turns to face the path south. 

 Quinn feels a small hard spherical object in the palm of Jurgen's hand. He grips his tiny scaly hand and holds it while the little kobold speaks. Quinn ever so subtly tilts his head and wrinkles his brow trying to make sense of what Jurgen says. His broken goblin-dwarwish speech is hard to follow, but he get's the gist. 

"Aye, those people and all their treasures will be ripe for the taking. We shall return soon with a worthy tribute."

He lets go of Jurgen's hand and palms the metallic sphere. 

"Be safe my friend. We'll see you soon."

Quinn turns and joins the rest of his friends and heads south.

(Jurgen: make a Slight of Hand and/or Deception check to see how well you pull that off. Quinn may Help. The Slight of Hand for the hiding-but-not-hiding, the Deception for the acting...)

(Jurgen: Slight-of-Hand check: 19.  Deception check: 3) 
(Contesting Dragon Perception roll: ▮▮  And INT roll: ▮▮)

OOC - NOTE: Jurgen would have wanted the dragon to see what he was doing, and he also would have wanted to be 'bad' at hiding it too.

Jurgen's magician's trick of pretending to hide the hand-off while actually revealing it goes impressively well. His accompanying stage whisper, however, is pretty obviously a ploy, even to non-dragons.

"I am not playing games, little kobold," chides Venomfang. "You are to detain yourself in yonder cottage until I release you."

"And you, human," he addresses Quinn. "Leave that ball the kobold gave you upon the ground, or die right now."

The dragon turns to the rest of you and raises its voice. "GO. NOW. BRING me the tribute! Toy with me AGAIN and I will reduce you all to bubbling vapor."

Bryony doesn't have to be told twice. She leaves the dragon's tower, checking over her shoulder to make sure the others are following. When they are far enough away from the tower so that the dragon will hopefully not overhear them, she whispers, "What are we going to do now? Are we really going to leave Jurgen with the dragon?"

With a sigh, Jurgen says "Go. It will be alright. Sir Roderick will keep me company. " 

He sits down on a nearby rock and starts to tinker. 

"As you wish." He tosses the metal sphere on the floor. "We shall return soon with your tribute."

Quinn turns on his heels and follows Bryony.

Kimberley was already moving away at speed, but she would be back.....

Venomfang takes flight once more, circling once high above the tower before soon coming to rest on the ground near Jurgen.

"You are my guest in the cottage," it begins, addressing Jurgen, its tones sweet again. It gestures with one set of greenish-yellow talons toward the ancient cottage attached to the base of the tower. "Go inside. Do not leave. Do not enter the tower. And do not bother me." Then it flies to the top of the tower where it had been perching.

The rest of the party, unless you have further business at the top of the hill, have retreated down the switchbacked lane to the bottom, where you regather out of sight or hearing of the dragon. 

Jurgen looking up from his tinkering asks Venomfang in draconic "Venomfang, I am a tinkerer, may I go to the blacksmiths building and tinker there? Hopefully there's something to do there."

"You are a filthy little kobold, is what. Did I not make myself quite clear? You are not leaving this place. You are not to remain outside here. You will enter that cottage door in five seconds, or I will deposit your corpse inside myself. Do not make me regret bargaining with your troupe of clowns."

"One....Two...Three..." Venomfang begins to count.

Once they're a safe distance from the dragon, Quinn gathers the group together to figure out a plan.

"What are we gonna do? We gotta get Jurgen out of there as soon as possible. I have a bit of coin that I'll happily pay as tribute, but we need more."

He pauses briefly and turns to Syzygy and Bryony with an idea.

"Do you remember, back in the cave where we fought King Klarg and lost Sir Roderick...wasn't there a room with treasures and coin? Perhaps we can gather that up and use that as tribute to free Jurgen."

Kimberley nodded, " We need resources, but yes we need to keep it happy until we are ready to hunt it..."

She looked to Sygyzy, " Selune has led us here for this reason. Our pack is not strong enough yet but she shattered my fear and replaced it with hunger."

" But to hunt such a thing we need to be at full strength.  Perhaps this Spider has treasure enough to sate it....we are not taking from the innocent."

" But it will die.  We will bloody our muzzles on its flesh."

" Let us speak with the druid and depart, the little dragon is clever and resourceful. He will prevail."

“Perhaps She has.” Syzygy’s face is indifferent despite feeling the strange burn of her celestial power coursing through him.

“Yes, the kobold has a cunning I can’t quite put my finger on. But also just the type of cunning that would piss off a Venomfang.  I believe it even chance Jurgen will either end up as breakfast or somehow accidentally slay the Dragon in a freak tinkering mishap” 

“I don’t recall any more Klarg treasure. Despite the unpleasant memory in the goblin cave, I’d be fine to return if there is something of worth. We could also slay the vile little creature in the crevasse under phandalin manor? Steal its treasure. Or were we bringing it treasure? “ Syzygy pauses annoyed that creatures big and small have him manipulated in some way

Jurgen looks dejected (acting like a child) and goes into the cottage. He turns in the doorway and sticks his tongue out in childish protest. 

"So," Jurgen asks "how many minions do you have so far, or am I the first? If I'm the first we need to get you ready. Where is your base, or is this it?" Jurgen kicks at some stones. "What would you like your base to be like?" as he takes out his tools ready to build something. "What would you like me to build for you? I figure that's why you choose me, right since I'm the smartest."

"You know, we could make this really work for you, presuming you're not short sighted and just want to be all (with hand gestures) 'I'm the big mean dragon, oooh look at me' I know stories of Great Dragons and how they partnered with others to become great. But... That's up to you now. You can be a famous Green Dragon with an empire or a splat stain on the tower after word gets out that there's a young dragon without a real plan, and no partners."

Jurgen's mind is remarkably calm through all this. He thinks to himself that this could go one of many ways.

He could get eaten, but he will not go down without a fight. Poison breath being the main worry. He may look to fashion some kind of gas mask.

He could just be bullied by this dragon, but he's been used to that living in a human world as a very short kobold. 

But, this may be an opportunity to be mutually beneficial to the party and the dragon. I would need to show him I and the party are more valuable as partners then dogs to go fetch trinkets about the country side.