Grimrin ducks out of sight, making his way to another branch before nocking a second arrow and taking careful aim at the rustling canvas. He draws the arrow back and waits to see whether the bandit surrenders or not.
Kulloda barely registers Mother Anachain’s order to surrender. But he’s still barely keeping himself in check and decides taking one more head should get them to really pay attention. And besides, they had to bring them all back anyway.
He raises Godsbane up and brings it down with all the force he can muster.
The canvas shudders as the man under it tremors with fear. "Don't hurt me... please, I... I'm just a cook!"he squeaks out as he tries to find his way out of his canvas prison. He starts going the wrong way first, but soon figures it out and finds his way out of the tent's canvas trap.
He sees the bandit that was telling the story, an arrow sticking out of his chest and a burnt hole in his side as he lie there - dead. Then he sees one of the old bandits with Godsbane still stuck in the ground, separating the man's head from his body. The cook screams, his eyes roll back into his head and he faints.
Anachain gives Kulloda a look. Or rather, the look. You know the one... The look that says she's not upset, she's just disappointed.
"Well now," she says after a moment. "Now that that nonsense is over and done with... Are there any others of you here still hiding or anything?" She asks this while looking to the one who claims to be a cook. "And what is on the menu? I think we've all worked up an appetite."
“Oh,” Anachain says, noticing the supposed cook fainted. “I guess dinner can wait…”
“Ok everyone, let’s tie up the sleepers and the cook and make sure there’s no others, eh?” She suggests to the others. She also mentally instructs Myrth to scout the area atop be sure there’s was no more bandits lurking about.
Kulloda cleans off the blade of his sword on the shirt of the now headless bandit. He picks up the head and adds it to the sack, now much lighter since he had put the other heads in the barrel before they left the wagon.
He looks to the other sleeping bandit and then the passed out cook. But frowns when Anachain suggests tying them up.
"Why tie them up if just removing head?" Kulloda asks, perplexed about why they'd go through the extra work.
"Heads that can still talk can answer questions," Anachain points out with a sigh. "Such as if they have other camps with more bandits... Or if they all live here or only come here in shifts. The mayor will surely appreciate being able to question a couple of them."
Truthfully, Anachain wasn't sure captives was a great idea. It just meant they had to be careful transporting them back and if there are more bandits it could mean that the mayor expects them to hunt even more down for the same compensation. Still, the dripping bag of heads was a rather unappetizing sight. They at least needed to get Kulloda a waterproof bag.
Kulloda pulls out the latest head from the bag and holds it up high and makes the mouth open and close and pretends to listen to it. Then he laughs, sticks it back in the bag and nods to Anachain.
"Okay. But if not answer questions then take just head back," Kulloda says.
He begins tying up the sleeping bandit and the cook.
"You know all the questions the mayor wants asked?" Anachain asks, impressed. "I wasn't in the meeting so it'll be up to you. If I read the mayor right, if you don't ask all the right questions we'll probably get less reward... So your call."
"Why be bandits? Where other bandits?" Kulloda yells at the passed out cook and sleeping bandit. Then when he gets no answer he looks over at Anachain and shrugs.
Losing interest in the whole questioning part of this, Kulloda finishes tying up the pair and then looks around. Togar appears to be very interested in what the tents are made of which amuses Kulloda.
Spotting Grimrin and Deniz, he points over at the tents and asks "More bandits?"
Deniz runs softly toward the next closest tent while Anachain is calling for surrender. Sniffing the air and listening for a moment, he then gingerly lifts the tent flap with the end of his staff before peeking inside. He finds no danger, but only smelly garments and some random junk.
No bandits here, Deniz calls in reply to Kulloda, then adds dismissively. Only some poorly-kept weapons, a few colorful gemstones, and some wooden chests containing a large number of those small metal discs that I believe people in these parts exchange for goods and services.
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
How does a red dragon blow out the candles on its birthday cake?
“Rough material anyway. How pedestrian.” Togar’s clawed hand drops the material that the tent is made from. He walks around, looking at this and that, examining how a true “bandit camp” is assembled, organized and run. “Look, here’s where they slept, here’s where they ate, here’s where they counted their gold, and then where they counted it again…”. He holds a feathered hand up to his mouth in the appearance of a yawn, but really it is a yak because shortly after a huge grey glob of sputum and a couple of tiny bones come up, he spits it on the ground.
“So. Can we take these bandits, with or without their heads, and drive them back to the mayor? I can’t wait to see what she has for us. Trying not to get my hopes up too high though.” He looks down at the ground, musing to himself. “Life is full of disappointments…”
Anachain puts her manacles on to the cook and then unties them. "This way you can still cook us dinner," she explains. "We'll all want a decent meal before heading back to town..." If the bandit cook objects at all then Anachain will happily suggest they can argue their case with Kulloda. "Though he prefers talking to people after he takes their heads off."
Myrth is given the job of watching the cook to make sure cooking is all they do and to alert Anachain if they try to get out of the manacles at all.
"So the deal with the mayor," Anachain says to Kulloda and Togar. "Did it cover what was to be done with any goods found upon the bandits?"
Grimrin brushes a bit of flaked off bark from his cloak after descending his tree, and walks around the perimeter of the camp warily, listening for the sound of any more enemies (perception15) before finally slinging his bow over his shoulder and rushing over to the tent where talk of coin pricked his ears. "If I'd known bandit-hunting paid tips, I would have spent a lot less time stealing scraps of food..." he pauses, realizing his slip. "... which is not to say that's what I was trying to do upon your wagon."
Kulloda laughs when he approaches and looks over Deniz's shoulder.
"Coins. Those are coins." He claps Deniz on the back. "You will like them."
Deniz looks at Kulloda with an expression almost blank but for a slightly raised eyebrow, and replies: Indeed? Apparently the bandits also like them...
The elf notes also with fascination how the sight of the coins excites Grimrin and Anachain as well as Kulloda, and ponders what makes them different from the bandits. Togar however seems unmoved so far. After helping the others to count the coins (apparently there are 200 gold coins) Deniz speaks with the owlin...
I have observed how the humans perceive Coins as a solution to their problems. However I have also observed that Coins appear to be the cause of their problems. My experience is limited in this thing, and it confuses me. Coins do not appear to stimulate your emotions in the same way...
It is not exactly a question, but an invitation to respond.
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
How does a red dragon blow out the candles on its birthday cake?
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Grimrin ducks out of sight, making his way to another branch before nocking a second arrow and taking careful aim at the rustling canvas. He draws the arrow back and waits to see whether the bandit surrenders or not.
Held Action Attack (16 to hit, 6 piercing damage)
The two on the ground continue to snore, having no idea what is going on around them. One mumbles, "Wait a minute Bessy, don't move so fast...Zzzzzz"
Kulloda barely registers Mother Anachain’s order to surrender. But he’s still barely keeping himself in check and decides taking one more head should get them to really pay attention. And besides, they had to bring them all back anyway.
He raises Godsbane up and brings it down with all the force he can muster.
(Godsbane - autocritical - (10+5 crit+2 Divine Fury + 3 crit + 3 Savage Attack + 2 rage)= 25 magical slashing)
After delivering the blow he roars at the tent.
”Come out now.”
The canvas shudders as the man under it tremors with fear. "Don't hurt me... please, I... I'm just a cook!" he squeaks out as he tries to find his way out of his canvas prison. He starts going the wrong way first, but soon figures it out and finds his way out of the tent's canvas trap.
He sees the bandit that was telling the story, an arrow sticking out of his chest and a burnt hole in his side as he lie there - dead. Then he sees one of the old bandits with Godsbane still stuck in the ground, separating the man's head from his body. The cook screams, his eyes roll back into his head and he faints.
Anachain gives Kulloda a look. Or rather, the look. You know the one... The look that says she's not upset, she's just disappointed.
"Well now," she says after a moment. "Now that that nonsense is over and done with... Are there any others of you here still hiding or anything?" She asks this while looking to the one who claims to be a cook. "And what is on the menu? I think we've all worked up an appetite."
“Oh,” Anachain says, noticing the supposed cook fainted. “I guess dinner can wait…”
“Ok everyone, let’s tie up the sleepers and the cook and make sure there’s no others, eh?” She suggests to the others. She also mentally instructs Myrth to scout the area atop be sure there’s was no more bandits lurking about.
Kulloda cleans off the blade of his sword on the shirt of the now headless bandit. He picks up the head and adds it to the sack, now much lighter since he had put the other heads in the barrel before they left the wagon.
He looks to the other sleeping bandit and then the passed out cook. But frowns when Anachain suggests tying them up.
"Why tie them up if just removing head?" Kulloda asks, perplexed about why they'd go through the extra work.
"Heads that can still talk can answer questions," Anachain points out with a sigh. "Such as if they have other camps with more bandits... Or if they all live here or only come here in shifts. The mayor will surely appreciate being able to question a couple of them."
Truthfully, Anachain wasn't sure captives was a great idea. It just meant they had to be careful transporting them back and if there are more bandits it could mean that the mayor expects them to hunt even more down for the same compensation. Still, the dripping bag of heads was a rather unappetizing sight. They at least needed to get Kulloda a waterproof bag.
Kulloda pulls out the latest head from the bag and holds it up high and makes the mouth open and close and pretends to listen to it. Then he laughs, sticks it back in the bag and nods to Anachain.
"Okay. But if not answer questions then take just head back," Kulloda says.
He begins tying up the sleeping bandit and the cook.
"You know all the questions the mayor wants asked?" Anachain asks, impressed. "I wasn't in the meeting so it'll be up to you. If I read the mayor right, if you don't ask all the right questions we'll probably get less reward... So your call."
"Why be bandits? Where other bandits?" Kulloda yells at the passed out cook and sleeping bandit. Then when he gets no answer he looks over at Anachain and shrugs.
Losing interest in the whole questioning part of this, Kulloda finishes tying up the pair and then looks around. Togar appears to be very interested in what the tents are made of which amuses Kulloda.
Spotting Grimrin and Deniz, he points over at the tents and asks "More bandits?"
Deniz runs softly toward the next closest tent while Anachain is calling for surrender. Sniffing the air and listening for a moment, he then gingerly lifts the tent flap with the end of his staff before peeking inside. He finds no danger, but only smelly garments and some random junk.
No bandits here, Deniz calls in reply to Kulloda, then adds dismissively. Only some poorly-kept weapons, a few colorful gemstones, and some wooden chests containing a large number of those small metal discs that I believe people in these parts exchange for goods and services.
How does a red dragon blow out the candles on its birthday cake?
Kulloda laughs when he approaches and looks over Deniz's shoulder.
"Coins. Those are coins." He claps Deniz on the back. "You will like them."
“Rough material anyway. How pedestrian.” Togar’s clawed hand drops the material that the tent is made from. He walks around, looking at this and that, examining how a true “bandit camp” is assembled, organized and run. “Look, here’s where they slept, here’s where they ate, here’s where they counted their gold, and then where they counted it again…”. He holds a feathered hand up to his mouth in the appearance of a yawn, but really it is a yak because shortly after a huge grey glob of sputum and a couple of tiny bones come up, he spits it on the ground.
“So. Can we take these bandits, with or without their heads, and drive them back to the mayor? I can’t wait to see what she has for us. Trying not to get my hopes up too high though.” He looks down at the ground, musing to himself. “Life is full of disappointments…”
Kulloda yells at the sleeping bandit and the cook again. "Wake up."
He shakes them a few times too.
Then he goes back to the coins to see how many there are.
Anachain puts her manacles on to the cook and then unties them. "This way you can still cook us dinner," she explains. "We'll all want a decent meal before heading back to town..." If the bandit cook objects at all then Anachain will happily suggest they can argue their case with Kulloda. "Though he prefers talking to people after he takes their heads off."
Myrth is given the job of watching the cook to make sure cooking is all they do and to alert Anachain if they try to get out of the manacles at all.
"So the deal with the mayor," Anachain says to Kulloda and Togar. "Did it cover what was to be done with any goods found upon the bandits?"
Kulloda looks serious for a moment then shrugs.
"Mayor not say," Kulloda answers. Then he smiles and laughs. "All ours."
"Good deal," Anachain says with a smile...
Grimrin brushes a bit of flaked off bark from his cloak after descending his tree, and walks around the perimeter of the camp warily, listening for the sound of any more enemies (perception 15) before finally slinging his bow over his shoulder and rushing over to the tent where talk of coin pricked his ears. "If I'd known bandit-hunting paid tips, I would have spent a lot less time stealing scraps of food..." he pauses, realizing his slip. "... which is not to say that's what I was trying to do upon your wagon."
Deniz looks at Kulloda with an expression almost blank but for a slightly raised eyebrow, and replies: Indeed? Apparently the bandits also like them...
The elf notes also with fascination how the sight of the coins excites Grimrin and Anachain as well as Kulloda, and ponders what makes them different from the bandits. Togar however seems unmoved so far. After helping the others to count the coins (apparently there are 200 gold coins) Deniz speaks with the owlin...
I have observed how the humans perceive Coins as a solution to their problems. However I have also observed that Coins appear to be the cause of their problems. My experience is limited in this thing, and it confuses me. Coins do not appear to stimulate your emotions in the same way...
It is not exactly a question, but an invitation to respond.
How does a red dragon blow out the candles on its birthday cake?