Knock Down
Your job, should you choose to accept it (and you have) is to delve a dungeon from top to bottom and report back to the Better Homes and Dungeons magazine what this dungeon was like. However this particular dungeon won't even open unless the person whom is trying to open it has performed three tasks first. The first task as it turns out is that you must defeat someone preying on the weak. This isn't difficult to find in Alexandria, so in conjunction with the Adventurer's Guild you've been given the task of defending one Vela Daomad who has of late been dealing with the difficult problem of someone coming to her house and demanding to be fed, housed, and paid.
It's not a long walk out to her little farm, and you can see why she needs the help. She's a little old gnome woman with a peg leg who looks like the sort who'd blow away in a strong wind. She settles you all down in her living room with tea or coffee if you want it, and then smiles at you kindly. "He should be by any minute. You'll see why he's such a problem then." She nods.
Sargon turns down the tea as politely as he can manage. He's positioned himself by a window with a good view of the front of the house, expecting that is the direction the visitor might come from. "We'll be ready," he assures the gnome.
Merek makes his way to the house that the gnome lady is at, and adjusts his nice cloak in black tones about him, while he adjusts his attire a bit also, his amulet of Eluna on also, as he nods to the woman, "I hope that we can manage it well," he says.
GAME: Sargon rolls perception: (19)+9: 28 GAME: Merek rolls perception: (9)+9: 18 GAME: Itzpapalotl rolls Perception: (20)+6: 26 GAME: Kaelyn rolls perception: (7)+10: 17
"If he wasn't invited and came in to eat your food and demand your bed and money then he should be fed to the livestock," Izpapalotl suggests in her slightly guttural, hissing voice. She squints slightly and turns to look about briefly, teeth bared. Then the Gnome gets a nod. The lizard is, of course ,over twice the height of the woman,but doesn't seem to have a problem with leaning forward to all fours so as to put them at almost the same height. "We will be making him leave if he is such a problem."
Well there's Kae, the spaztic, curvy elf, has juuuust finisheed cleaning up a realy big mess that she kinda well maybe instigated? Then again, fish-fixated dragons can cause problems at any age! Kae tilts her head left and right as she looks around, then waggles her arms at the folks here.. "Hellooooo!" she calls out hapily, the goofy elf all smiles as she glances around.
"You-don't-ssay?" The sith-makar arcs his neck so he might see out the window, over Sargon. Then, he turns back to the armored sith-makar. The inner lids flicker, flicker rapidly. "Peasse to you, warrior," he says. "One is glad to see the People about. This one is Kuumvu, as the soundofthedrums, of the keeper-caste." The serpentine tail weaves behind him. Weaves and weaves, curls and uncurls.
Banshee gives a scratch at her chin and looks at the spastic elf. "You are loud." A sigh, and he checks his arrows again, and then his bow, and finally the spear. Yep. All good, all here. Another look around, and she gives a look at the gnome woman, a frown. She starts to drum her fingers on the nearest surface she can find. Boredom... Boredom was setting in. "How much longer?"
Thud. Thud.
The ground shakes under you. The woman smiles. "That'll be him right now."
Thud, thud.
Those of you looking out the window will see a foot. A foot attached to an ankle. Attached presumably to a leg, but there's no sign of that. You see... the owner of said parts is too /large/ to be seen. Then out the window you can see this behemoth being sitting down. Now you can see the knees. There's a rumble as the door is /flicked/. The woman lets out a sigh and rises to her one good foot and peg leg. "Vela, Vela? Time for dinner!" The sound of the 'man's' voice echoes through the house like a deep bass bell.
Merek looks to the side in thought, and nods to the others while rubbing his palm upon his beard in thought, "Merek, I'm a Seer of Eluna and Mage," he mentions, while he pulls his cloak about him, hood up, when he sees the foot, then he looks to Itz and Kuu also, "Always good to see your people here and about."
Sargon leans closer to the window. He flexes his knees slightly, lowering himself into a partial crouch and looking through the window from his new vantage point in an attempt to see the person. "Is it a giant?" he whispers in awe.
Curls and uncurls, the tail. "One is glad to-be-here. But ah, they said there-was-coin to be..." And then the voice. The VOICE thundering downwards as grand as a bell! Kuumvu breaks off, and beelines to the window then, and then shoves his head outwards. Thrusts it outwards, potentially alongside Sargon's own visage, and peers up, up, up...
"Dinner! And-why-dinner? Why-dinner when we haven't had-a-song? This-one-is Kuumvu, as the drums! And-these-are one's companions! Peasse to you!" calls the keeper-caste, his voice poised to carry, as at Fire or ceremony--or from a window, calling up to a giantous creature and possible death!
Even Izzy has to look... Up. THe lizard stares openly for a long moment, watchin the giant in question. She actually blinks once, a rarity for her picked up from human compatriots. The lizard clacks her teeth once and then falls silent. She does give Merek a brief nod. Really, just a head cant and a flick of her tongue. Acknowledgment.
There's boming, and more booming... Kae blinks "I so didn't do that!!! No explosions in my lab this..." She peers at the knees outside the window... She blinks a few more times and then glances to the one that called her loud "I'm soooo not loud! I'm Kaelyn!" she says cheerful as usual…
Banshee's eye twitches as the noise is booming above. She looks toward Kaelyn, she seems to be blaming her for this. Clearly, it must be the elf's fault for things being so loud. Though the others in the party do not really get much less as Banshee turns to look at - presumably - Vela. ".... are you sure he's not trying to give you food instead?"
"Yes he's a giant! If he were an ordinary teenager I wouldn't have called in the favor the guild owes me. Stop gawking out the window!" The old woman seems tougher now that she's on her feet, but still so wispy that you're half afraid that the gumption she's showing will carry her off. She opens the front door. Motions for you to follow her.
Outside it's easier to see him. He /is/ a rather large giant, but it seems she's right. He looks like a teen. Rangy and mostly bones he has an unfinished look to him as though he'll actually be bigger someday. He's peering down at the window that he's being looked out of at. "Dinner and a show? Sing for me little-folk!" He claps his hands and the gust of wind nearly bowls the little old woman over. She's forced to lean against the door.
"Vela! What's for dinner today?" He seems to instantly forget the thought of entertainment when he finally notices the little woman struggling out of the house. She gives him a short look and puts her hands on her hips, her lips thin.
"Robert, these folks are here to talk to you." Her words are firm, but she looks a little intimidated nonetheless.
"Hssst...Vela's ..." words. Fire. Gathering. "Sssteeew...pooot! It-is-too small!" and it has the beginnings of a tune. Kuumvu stares up at the creature, having followed Vela's lead.
He, too, has to grasp the side of the building--that being one of the few things able to stand up to the breath of a giant. What has he been eating, anyway?
"Sshe is very-sad, and none-of-us-want you to starve," he says up to the giant. "Perhaps you can help think of a ssolution?" to Vela, "You laid-this-egg on-your-own? You are very brave." The inner lids flicker, flicker, and he looks towards the others, particularly the other scaled. Then, back to the giant. "One-did-not know. Is it normal that ssoftskins give birth to giants?" he asks more quietly, to the others. Well, the non-scaled of the bunch.
Merek lifts up a hand to the giant and calls to him, "Greetings, I'm Merek, I am from the Elunans," he offers, then he places his gloved palms upon his hips while he listens to the conversation for a moment. Not the craziest thing he's seen.
Sargon comes out to stand with the others. He peers up at the giant. "You look to be almost grown," he begins, voice raised much louder than when talking to normal sized people of course. "Why do you still come here for food?"
Kae is looking waaaaaaaaaaaaay up at the person, she blinks, then tilts her head and blinks again... "Oooooooh, I bet it's really tough finding you shoes!" She says, waggling her arms out to the side as she looks from person to person to person curiously.
"...Can we find somewhere with more food for the giant?" There's a pause while the Lizard is is apparently thinking about this carefully, but hse is also out of her depth. "Somewhere with livestock," she resolves slowly. "Do we know of one who can afford to feed a giant for work?" She clacks her jaws again.
"He's not /my/ child!" Vela looks alarmed at the very thought.
"Vela summons food for me all the time! She summons good food!" This seems to be an answer for most things. He looks around at you all then back to Vela with a displeased look on his face. "It's dinner time Vela."
The little old woman sidles closer to the group of you, trying to hide behind you all. "I'm not feeding you any more. You need to stop coming here." She makes a little shooing motion and the ground rumbles as the teenaged giant shifts his weight.
"I EAT THE COWS THEN."
"Not my cows!" The little old woman startles forward a little bit, waving her hands at the giant who grins in victory.
He's smarter than he looks, looking down at Itzpapalotl. "I no work. Vela feeds me just fine!" He snaps his fingers with another bang of noise. "Speaking of! Dinner!"
"What you are doing," Sargon begins sternly, "Is preying on those smaller and weaker than you. And we were sent to put a stop to it! It can be easy or hard - that is up to you!"
Merek lifts up a hand to Sargon, then he steps forward, "Greetings, it is a pleasure to meet you, I ask before you move to take the cows, did you ever wonder if there was a better, easier way to eat, with little work?" he asks, while he motions a bit.
"Kssst, ksst. And as-important as us stabbing your ankles, there will be no-more cows if you eat them," the sith-makar Kuumvu says quickly. "Then, Vela must-leave. Sshe will be GONE, because there are-no-cows."
"Sshe will-be-gone. There will-be-no-cows," His tail moves back and forth, flickers back and forth. He looks to Merek, and back. "Ssa. Let us find an idea. Otherwise."
"Otherwise, you will sstarve. Let us sshare words!"
Banshee sighs and then starts to knock an arrow as the Giant seems to announce that he's going to go eat the cows instead. Another baleful look around, the last part angled toward Kaelyn... she's sure that somehow that elf is behind these problems.
Somehow...
Somehow it must be Kaelyn.
And then Banshee trudges out in the direction the giant will have to go to get to the cows, he looks up at this kin and calls out, "Like the lizard says. So, you wanna talk or wanna fight?"
Kae looks back and forth between folks, and blinks a bit, tapping her chin... "If only I could ummm.. "She peers at the folks ready to fight, then flails her arms "Oooh Umm I might umm, I think I can mebbe help?" Ummm... She rubs at the back of her neck..> Then again, it is Artifice... "Umm I'm a bit of an artificer and stufff.... Ummmmm If I can get the right stuffs I might can mebbe help with the food issue... I think...."
"Vela make food!" The giant looks a little more irate now. "I eat cows, or Vela makes food." Okay maybe he isn't /that/ smart. Smart enough to know when he has a good thing.
Meanwhile Vela's shoulders slump and she trucks back into the house. A few seconds later she's dragging out a huge cauldron that looks like it must weigh more than she does. Apparently she's stronger than she looks. The sight of the cauldron seems to excite the young giant and he peers down at you all with an air of superiority. "Talk all you want, fight if you want! I will win and Vela will make food either way!"
"Perhaps we should take all the food for ourselves and leave. Then you have nothing," Izzy suggests, in a mutter. "Food should not be hoarded anyway. Soft skins are so wasteful about these things."
GAME: Merek rolls diplomacy: (4)+12: 16
Merek looks up to the giant in thought, then he motions a bit to the others, quietly offering, "Those that can, make sure that the livestock are moved, I will keep his attention for a moment, with Vela here." He then shouts up to the giant, "Can't you see this poor old woman has enough of this to deal with? There are places with more food and you'd turn that aside? It's selfish!" He is calling attention to himself.
Sargon stares at Merek blankly. Move the livestock? Somehow Sargon thinks he'll have more luck fighting the giant. But he's willing to give the others and their plans a chance. He glances at Izzy. Taking all the food from here might just work. Next he looks at Kae. Not sure what her plan is, he hurries to shift his attention to Banshee. "We can always let them try first, and save fighting for a last resort..." he seems surprised at the words coming out of his own mouth.
"Ksst, ksst, then-you-sstarve," the keeper-caste replies, with a fluid shrug. A serpentine shrug, of a lean form.
Kuumvu then looks to Merek, "This one has no idea how-to-move a herd of livesstock," he says, sounding this side of laughter. "One might BITE them, ksst, if that-is-what you mean."
He looks back to the giant, and lowers his voice. "Perhaps we-convince him he iss cursed if-he sstays?" Low-voiced. He doesn't understand artifice either, really. Artifice isn't really a...thing in Am'shere, unless it's used by the Charneth. Or, stolen from them. But, he does blink a few times at Kaelyn. He just doesn't really digest what she's said. Except... "...hsst. You are a--do you know-anything-of children?" he asks. And to Banshee, he blinks once, twice, as though taking her/him in. The lids flicker.
GAME: Banshee rolls Knowledge/Local: (3)+2: 5 GAME: Merek rolls knowledge/local: (10)+6: 16
"No take food!" The giant smacks his hand onto the ground irritably and the ground shakes a little with the force of the impact. "Vela no give it to me, I no let you take!" He looks toward Vela whom is now hiding somewhat behind the cauldron it's big enough for her to hide behind too. Then the giant's eyes fall on Merek. "Where more food? There is no more food than here. Vela make me as much food as I can eat! Good food!" He looks even more irate at Kuumvu. "NO starve, Vela feed! Vela! Food!"
The little gnome woman startles at the loudness of the giant's voice but she clutches the thing she's hiding behind and shakes her head vehemently. "Not this time!"
GAME: Kuumvu rolls perform/sing: (8)+10: 18 GAME: Sargon rolls sense motive: (13)+6: 19 GAME: Banshee rolls sense Motive: (1)+3: 4 (EPIC FAIL) GAME: Merek rolls sense motive: (10)+3: 13
"There are giants that aren't too far from here," Merek asides then to Banshee, while he takes a moment to cross his arms upon his cloak, "There are places that have an excess of livestock that can't feed families there's so much, if you know the places to go that is. You could make a deal to keep away wolves as well as men and be paid in food also!"
Kae peers curiously "Well there's that, ya know you could probably help clear and till land... ya know a lil work never hurt anyone, and this lady here, well she has to work for that food.. Yer just taking it from her and stuff... Maybe garden a bit, or something, or like be a shepherd?" She asks again, tilting her head the other way... "Sooo many things you could do for food! Besides take it from a little lady!"
Sargon shifts his weight slightly, turning to one side. "He's getting ready to ... " what, to attack? That doesn't seem quite right. "To do something rash. I don't think we can delay much longer. Whatever we're going to do, we'd better do it soon..."
"Then perhaps-his-people will take him in," Kuumvu breathes, when Merek makes the suggestion. Hey, it sounds like a good idea, and Merek seems to have some knowledge of the area!
He looks quickly towards the giant. "This-one-agrees. ...he is-ready to lose hiss temper."
"...and the elder iss getting-ready-to give in," he says, low tones.
GAME: Itzpapalotl rolls sense motive: (12)+0: 12
Banshee turns and looks at Kae, then up at the giant, then frowns. Well... she was at a loss for this. Not only could she not think of a good idea (or where giants even were) but now everyone else seemed to be speaking more sense than he was. A sigh, and he lifts the bow back over his shoulder before removing the spear. A stuff of the head into the ground and he leans on the haft and listens, a grumble, "They're /right/, it would be good."
GAME: Merek rolls diplomacy: (4)+12: 16
"I don't think he'll go along with it. We need someone to come get him. Like... A real parent," Izzy replies slowly. "Giants do have parents, yesss?" She'll look to the others. "I am sure they might be willing."
GAME: Merek casts Mage Armor. Caster Level: 1 DC: 14 GAME: Sargon rolls cmb+6: (4)+8+6: 18 GAME: Itzpapalotl rolls CMB: (11)+1: 12 GAME: Itzpapalotl activates her Titan Armor, gaining: +4 Str GAME: Merek rolls cmb: (13)+4: 17 GAME: Banshee rolls cmb: (5)+8: 13
Sargon wraps his arms around an oversized kneecap. "Stop him!" He digs his own heels into the ground and does his best to hold the giant still. "That does not belong to you!" he bellows.
Nervously, the sith-makar hums a few bars. Mid-note, he stops, and looks to the others. "Northwesst! There are-giants two dayss' walk from here. One overheard in a tavern, thiss-last-week."
"...one heard they-were-peaceful. I imagine-they-would be upsset if-they--" And then. Then everything happens at once. The giant dives, the companions dogpile.
He whips around, his hands coming up in a defensive gesture. Hold. Hold. Register what's up. He hums a few, different bars, and reaches down to slap his thigh. His breath moves a little too fast, his eyes are a little too bright, and yet. Yet... "They're quick, quick. Ssmall but quick. They'll be on you, giant."
"Quick, quick, quick!"
GAME: Merek rolls diplomacy: (18)+12: 30 GAME: Aftershock rolls 1d20+2: (4)+2: 6
Merek moves to the giant so he can assist with holding him up, while he assists with all his power in it also. "Don't do this, this woman has been nothing but kind to you, you owe it to her to at least her her out, listen to her explain why she's upset... I know how it feels to want for things, but this isn't the way!"
The giant doesn't /want/ to listen, but with all of you there to pin him down at a moment's notice he's humbled enough to listen. And you all hammer out an agreement. The old woman agrees to feed him provided he does chores around her farm for her. Seems that she has enough resources to feed him (via her magic cauldron) but didn't approve of him being a layabout. This way, everyone's happy. Well... the giant's not /that/ happy, but it's something. And with that - your first task is complete.
-End