"Maybe they don't eat the rocks? Maybe they are 'erbivores." Hurrig sits for a second, thinking about that and shutters at the thought of not eating meat,

Thuston nods to Hurrig and adds

"That makes more sense... and that's why they are killing the rabbits... so they don't eat the grass and have it all for them!! " clearly satisfied with himself the paladin finish his food " A little bit excesive that ability to eliminate competence for food but... who really understands the designs of Nature?! " he turns to Dorno " No offense my friend!! I can't even fully understand Thor's designs myself!" 

"Well, that wouldn't make much sense. They kinda 'ave sharp lookin' teeth. And nothin' in my experience with sharp ****in teeth is gonna be munchin' on any veggies..." Hurrig sits back takes a few sips of his mead. "Since the beast turns things to stone... What if tha beast can "UN" turn 'em ta stone too." Hurrig uses air quotes around UNturn. He takes another long gulp of his mead, "Then while tha prey is un-turned (again airquotes) tha basilisk munches a wee bit off, right? It'd be a real messy ordeal for tha ones already missin' bits, as I'm sure the blood would start to spill all over the place." Hurrig takes a bite out of some jerky, kind of ferociously like mocking the animal, and washes it down with some mead. "Then it turns em back to stone to save for later... Kinda like we smoke and cure our meat, it stones and petrifies its meat..." He finishes his tale and gets up to rinse his hands with some water,

"Or maybe it just eats rocks."

Dorno is busy eating and mumbles "bas-lisk eat meat, not rock."  "Don't know how.  Dorno hears they look very scary!"

With regard to being bait, Dorno shrugs and says "Dorno is good at running away from angry beasts."  "In Oak Father's forest, Dorno tries to be nice to the animals and get angry ones to calm down, but it does not work always.  Angry wolf chase elk, then Dorno is squirrel in a tree before wolf can see!"  He smiles proudly before adding "Oak Father knows Dorno tries to do good but gets scared, and that Dorno does not always want to be Dorno, so he lets him change shape sometimes.  Oak Father is very good to Dorno."  He smiles again.

After a moment of rubbing his chin and squinting the firbolg asks "friends, what happens if one is turned to stone?"  "I don't think Dorno can fix it."

OOC Translation, Dorno is willing to be bait, if he isn't going to just be turned to stone the instant he is seen, that is.

"That is a good question, Dorno..." Hurrig looks up at the giant Firbolg, with a sullen gaze. "I don't think bait is a good use for you friend... What if I could blind the beast? I know we have the mirrors, but if it can't see, can it still petrify..."

Thurston looks at Dorno when Hurrig narrates how he thinks the basilisk feed. 

" I rather prefer they eat rocks... poor rabbits..." he says. 

When Dorno speaks his mind he adds

"You are brave Dorno, and the gifts Oak Father grants you are amazing. But I would rather tempt them with already dead meat than risk you... or a really nice and tasty rock" he smiles.

Dorno smiles at Thurston, then Hurrig.  "Thank you, friend, and new friend."  He beams.

"Ooooh, yes, blind it!  Yes.  Maybe work!"  Scratching his chin yet again, Dorno asks "what about BIG mirror?"  "Can you make shiny thunder man's shield a mirror?"  Dorno looks at his own, worn wooden shield.  "Dorno's is not so shiny."

Their midday meal complete, the party sets out once again. They walk over hill and dale all afternoon, until a couple of hours before dusk Dorno finally spots something - a tiny statue of a bird lying in the grass. Its features are so startlingly lifelike that no mortal craftsmanship could compare.

"Wait!" Bründir shouts, leaping out, " 'nyone got a fire? Got a trick a trav'llin' magician taught me, makes a fire blast like the damned sun!"

Hurrig begins to search the area for more of these little statuettes and over the course of the next two hour he recovers four intact. Two birds, a rabbit and a squirrel. There doesn't seem to be anything south-west of the wagon's current location. However, as he heads north-east he starts to find more, almost all of which are... damaged. Missing limbs... missing heads... half a torso missing with the edges crumbling away...

As he goes further, he eventually comes across the life-sized statues of several deer. Realistic in the extreme, you can see every line and hair on their pelts. Their lines of motion are incredibly sophisticated and on closer inspection some even have gaping injuries carved upon them. There are spidery cracks across their haunches and nauseatingly realistic wounds in their hides.

The terrain to the north-east has grown increasingly rocky the further one goes, with bluffs of exposed stone lining the hill tops and crested ridges topped with craggy tors. By the time he is done with the search, there's only an hour of light remaining until dusk and it will take them almost that long to return to the wagon.

Jex seems nervous and jittery, his eyes darting around. 

"Perhaps we should return and make camp, beyond the perimeter of their territory. We can look for fresh tracks in the morning and try to catch one unaware." 

Thurston ask to Dorno

"Are these creatures nocturnal? If not perhaps the night gives us the advantage... " 

Hurrig takes the rabbit statue and brings it back with him. “Dorno, I think a friend of yours? Let us take him with us, make us a friend for the journeys ahead.” Hurrig turns to the rest of the party.

”I definitely think it best ta camp outside the perimeter. I wouldn’t want to scout any deeper during the night, or be in its territory while we’re asleep, as we may never wake up.”

Dorno is suddenly saddened to find the first petrified bird.  It is as he feared after speaking to the rabbit.  "Poor little bird, he not want to be stone any more than Dorno wants to be now.  This is not way of Oak Father.  The hunt between wild animals is His way and is fair, in vision of Great Oak, at least.  Bas-lisk not hunt fair, like some men, but worse."  He pets the little stone bird on the head.

The druid is saddened further when Hurrig brings him a stone rabbit later, but appreciates the gift, of sorts.  "Yes, Dorno bring him with us.  Maybe make better so he can live good life for all other stone rabbits.  One rabbit in spirit of others is much better than saving none.  Sometimes it is the best Dorno can do for animal friends, but is still a good thing."

At Thurston's question, Dorno rubs his chin and says.  "Dorno not sure.  Maybe magic raven can go see if they sleep?"

Hurrig looks at Dorno, "Ya right, friend. Sometimes its tha best we can do. But what did you mean earlier by ya don't always wantta be Dorno? You are safe with us. If Dorno wants ta be somethin' else, I will keep ya safe."

"Good idea my wise friend!" says Thurston to Dorno.

Dorno listens to Hurrig and replies "no, no, Dorno is happy to be Dorno now, tho' being animals still make good uses, and is fun!"  He smiles, but then looks afar as he reflects on the past.  "Dorno not always have friends.  Some, when Dorno was young in Fey, not so nice to Dorno because of his size.  They say he is stupid.  Dorno sees trees standing with friends, dancing in wind and sun looking happy and he wants to be a big tree.  He sees brooks talking and shining in sun and wants to be like the brook.  He sees the animals with baby and family laughing and playing in woods and grass and wants to be like them, too.  Oak Father is good to Dorno and lets him be like animals sometimes, but tells Dorno to find new friends and stay Dorno and be good and help other things that are good."

Vark follows along, and as the group begins to discover the petrified basilisk victims, he grows increasingly nervous. The shining raven has been perched on Vark's staff as they traveled, and at Dorno's suggestion, Vark reaches out to pet his new little friend. "Ah y-yes that is a good idea. Raven, uhm I'd like you to scout again... off in that direction. See if there are any basi- well uhm..." he looks around, realizing the bird might not know what a basilisk is, and also that he himself didn't have a very solid picture either. "Uhm... any uh big, scary lizard... things. See how many you can find and if they're asleep. And c-come back before it gets too dark. Uhm... thanks." and with that, the bird caws in acknowledgement before flying off to complete the task.

The light will fade soon and the time for scouting is now or never. Vark's raven alights from his staff with a soft beating of its wings and soars off towards the north-east.

A little under an hour later it returns and relays its findings to Dorno, before soon after reverting to its silver form. It saw no big lizards, but many caves going into the sides of hills and under the ground. In the middle of this complex of entrances is a tall watchtower, much like the ones seen inside the bandit camp. At the foot of this tower is a wooden cabin inside a fenced area.

Dorno relays the message from the raven and asks "who would build a house in the middle of the bas-lisk den?"